


Glee Fan Project Season 6

by GleeFanProject



Series: Glee Fan Project Season 6 [1]
Category: Glee
Genre: Multi, glee fan project
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-12
Updated: 2015-03-20
Packaged: 2018-03-07 05:44:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 13
Words: 334,074
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3163418
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GleeFanProject/pseuds/GleeFanProject
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Glee Fan project is a fan made version of Glee's Season 6. We are a group of Gleeks, talented fanfic writers, musicians, Broadway buffs, skilled image editors, music lovers, passionate shippers, fellow Gleek’s and friends who have come together to write a fan version of Glee Season 6. For more information please visit our Tumblr or Official Site.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. New Year, New start

**Author's Note:**

> This is a work of fiction, Glee, the characters, places, etc are copyrighted to their rightful owners. The new characters, events and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual events, real persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental. The songs, lyrics and videos used for the episodes are property of their respective owners. For entertainment purposes only. No Copyright intended.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on Glee…Kurt and Blaine had some ups and downs, more downs than ups, but they managed to overcome them and now they live together in the loft. Sam and Mercedes broke up and she is now on tour with Brittany and Santana, who apparently had a great time in the lesbo Island. Wanky! Sam gave up his modeling career to go back to Lima…is he going to restore the Glee Club? Hmm…Now, Rachel’s headed to L.A. to become a big time T.V actress. That’s cool right?…And that’s what you missed on Glee!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s our first episode! Please keep in mind that this episode is mainly a set up for our season. So if you don’t see your favorites or something doesn’t make sense, stick with us because it will! At the beginning of every chapter there will be a link to the episode's official playlist, in case we included a song that you may not have heard of and sometimes we will also include a link to our intro video. Obviously, we wrote the characters singing these songs with their own vocal arrangements in mind that’s why some of these songs are covers and some are the originals. We hope you enjoy them!

[Intro Video](http://gleefanproject.tumblr.com/post/107605898073/previously-on-glee-kurt-and-blaine-had-some-ups)

[Episode 1 Playlist](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv_rvGfxbXKNmDZV62lZVAgxmprT-xYhn)

Behind the curtain hung haphazardly from the ceiling, Kurt and Blaine are sleeping peacefully in their cocoon of blankets with their arms wrapped around one another. The sun is just starting to rise above the New York skyline as it filters into their room, making strange patterns on the ceiling after reflecting through tiny snowflakes on the glass window pane. The room is quiet with nothing but the dehumidifier roaring throughout the morning air. That is until the faint whispers of a name being called out start to emerge from the quiet. It starts out soft.

"Kurt? Kurt?”

After a few moments have passed, it is heard again, but much louder this time, “Kurt?”

Rolling over in his sleep, Kurt turns to his left to see where the noise is coming from.

“Kurt! Kurt!”

When he turns and opens one sleepy eye, he sees Santana standing by his bedside. Groaning and choosing to ignore her, he rolls back over so his back is facing her.

“Okay! You know what? I tried to do this the nice way!” Santana exclaims, a bit too loudly for both Kurt and Blaine, who are still very much asleep. When neither of the boys move, she throws back the covers causing them to curl in closer to one another for warmth. “Listen Mr. and Mr. Lady Gay, if you don’t get up Britt and I will miss our flight. Don’t think I won’t hold you two personally responsible!” she adds, clearly getting impatient.

“Go away, Santana! We’re trying to sleep!” Kurt snaps.

“I’m trying to sleep.” He corrects, slightly annoyed when he notices that his fiance is still snoring. He sometimes hated how Blaine could continue sleeping like a baby, even when an atomic bomb with a female voice, decided to wake them up by exploding every. single. day.

Santana huffs. “You have two seconds to get out of that bed!” She adds.

A couple moments pass by and there’s still no response from the two men. “Okay, fine! You wanna do this the hard way?” Santana exclaims as she turns and leaves the room, huffing all the way to the room she shares with Brittany.

She starts rummaging through the drawers of the large wooden dresser in a haze of anger. It isn’t until her girlfriend speaks that she turns to look at the blonde, who is sitting fully dressed in a pair of green pants and a white knitted sweater with a cat on it. Taking one look at her other half, she immediately feels the anger slip away from her.

“What are you looking for?” Asks the blonde girl.

“A pair of scissors! One little snip and I bet that’ll get lady-face and Mr. Rodgers out of bed!” Santana says, smirking at the idea of her evil plan. ** **  
****

“Santana, don’t! I have a better idea.” Brittany says, which puts her girlfriend’s scalping plan on hold. ** **  
****

Santana watches as Brittany walks over to the coffee pot and puts a coffee filter in before filling it with four scoops of coffee grounds. Then, she turns to the sink to fill the pot with the right amount of water before flipping the switch and leaning against the kitchen counter as the coffee starts to brew. Santana looks at her girlfriend completely stunned.

“Coffee? Really? We can buy some on our way to the airport!”

Brittany gives Santana a sweet smile and adds, “It’s not for us…”

It is then that they hear the familiar sounds of the box spring creaking while Kurt and Blaine, looking quite exhausted and almost zombie-like, lumber out of their cocoon and into the kitchen. They take a seat at the table where Brittany has set the two mugs of coffee.

“The unicorns love their coffee.” Brittany informs her girlfriend, a serious look on her face, which just makes Santana laugh.

Walking over to where Brittany is sitting, perched on the kitchen counter, Santana leans into her girlfriend’s side and lets her head rest on her shoulder. “You really are a genius Britt.” She says, which earns her an enormous white-toothed smile from the girl by her side.

\-------

The room is quiet, just a tiny little snore can be heard. Rachel is sleeping peacefully with all the blankets tangled to her legs. It’s a peaceful January morning and the City of Angels is still sleeping. The sun is starting to rise as Rachel tosses and turns from one side to the other, trying to cover up the small rays of sunshine peeking through her window. She wants to keep sleeping, but apparently the whole universe is conspiring against her because just a moment later, loud harsh sounds come from the small obstructive piece of plastic sitting on her bedside table. She covers her face with a pillow and presses her head against the mattress trying to kill the sound, but the alarm just gets louder and louder. Surrendering to her impending fate, Rachel sits up, turns off the alarm and gets out of bed to get ready for the day.

Finally swinging her legs to the side and dragging herself out of bed, she heads toward the walk-in closet attached to her bedroom and starts to take out the items she needs for her usual morning routine. It isn’t until she’s starting to take out her exercise clothes that she hears the familiar _ping_ from her phone, notifying her that she just received a text message. Rachel walks back to her room and picks up her phone from the nightstand. The moment she looks at the screen her whole face lights up into a coy bashful smile. Little moments like this one are the very things that have been keeping her in such a great mood lately. She unlocks her screen and with a huge grin, she texts back before leaving the phone by the bed and walking with a brand new attitude toward her closet.

Humming along the way…

_(Rachel)…I’m just a little bit caught in the middle. Life is a maze and love is a riddle. I don’t know where to go, can’t do it alone I’ve tried and I don’t know why…._

Rachel sings while she starts to exercise a little. She does some push ups and steps on her stepper; her typical workout routine, while concentrating on her new goal: to win a Golden Globe Award as a T.V. actress.

_(Rachel)…Slow it down, make it stop or else my heart is going to pop. ‘Cause it’s too much, yeah it’s a lot to be something I’m not. I’m a fool out of love ’cause I just can’t get enough…_

She walks to her bathroom to shower off the sweat from her workout routine. She turns the nozzle and checks the temperature before pulling the diverter which makes the warm water disperse from the filtered shower head. Stepping inside, the water falls around her, pounding on her back and head. Leaning her head back, she lets the water cascade over her head, wetting her hair and running down her back. She grabs the shampoo bottle and squirts some in her hand before putting the bottle back in her shower caddy. After finishing her elaborate shower, the brunette turns the shower head off and reaches out of the shower to grab her blue fluffy towel and wrap it around her torso. She steps out of the tub and starts mixing the ingredients needed for her face mask. Going from one side of the bathroom to the other, she grabs the things she needs to finish her morning routine. After some minutes, she rinses her face with an ice face bath that makes her skin look red for a few minutes. Then, she brushes her teeth, her hair, and walks out the bathroom.

_(Rachel)…I’m just a little bit caught in the middle. Life is a maze and love is a riddle. I don’t know where to go, can’t do it alone I’ve tried and I don’t know why…_

Rachel heads over to her walk-in closet to look for her day’s attire. She passes her bed and looks over her shoulder to her alarm clock and notices the time, which is a lot later than she thought it was. Running to her closet, she throws on the first blouse and jeans she can find and then runs down the stairs into the kitchen to grab a bagel. She quickly spreads cream cheese on the top of it. With the bagel wedged between her teeth, she throws her almost dry hair into a quick ponytail. She’s lucky to have hair and makeup professionals on set, otherwise her brown hair would constantly be a complete and utter mess. She slips on a pair of tan sperry’s and runs out the front door, locking it behind her. Once on the sidewalk she takes a deep breath of the fresh morning crisp air and continues singing.

_(Rachel)…I’m just a little girl lost in the moment. I’m so scared but I don’t show it. l I can’t figure it out, it’s bringing me down I know I’ve got to let it go and just enjoy the show…_

Rachel climbs into her brand new car, a Lexus, courtesy of the network, and turns on the engine, before making her way out of the small parking lot in front of her apartment building and waving goodbye to one of her neighbors that happens to pass by. Rachel finishes the remains of her bagel and slips out into traffic, heading to set for another day of filming. The radio is softly playing and she chuckles at the irony of the song that is currently filling the atmosphere of her car. She turns up the volume and sings along,

_(Rachel)…The sun is hot in the sky just like a giant spotlight. The people follow the signs and synchronize in time. It’s a joke nobody knows, they’ve got a ticket to the show…_

She drives through the city of Los Angeles, admiring the view and singing while the fresh air of the morning hits her face and the tender rays of the sun illuminate her cheeks.

_(Rachel)…Yeah, I’m just a little bit caught in the middle. Life is a maze and love is a riddle. I don’t know where to go, can’t do it alone I’ve tried and I don’t know why. I’m just a little girl lost in the moment I’m so scared but I don’t show it. I can’t figure it out, it’s bringing me down I know I’ve got to let it go and just enjoy the show…oh oh…just enjoy the show…oh oh…_

She gets stuck in the usual traffic of the city. Looking at her watch, she realizes that time is ticking by. She drums her fingers on the top of the steering wheel, hoping that traffic will start moving a bit faster. If not she knows she’s going to be late. Taking a deep breath to calm her agitation, she continues to sing.

_(Rachel)…I’m just a little bit caught in the middle. Life is a maze and love is a riddle. I don’t know where to go, can’t do it alone. I’ve tried and I don’t know why. I’m just a little girl lost in the moment. I’m so scared but I don’t show it. I can’t figure it out, it’s bringing me down. I know I’ve got to let it go and just enjoy the show…._

The traffic jam suddenly clears up and she pushes the pedal to the ground, trying to hurry as much as possible. The L.A. skyline is now bright and a bit orange indicating that the day has officially started.

_(Rachel)…dum dee dum, dudum de dum…Just enjoy the show, dum dee dum, dudum dee dum…just enjoy the show…_

Rachel pulls over at the entrance of the network studios, shows her access card and waits for the security guard to open the lifting barriers. Then, Rachel swings her car into her assigned parking spot and puts the car in park. She steps out of it and pulls her jacket from the passenger’s seat and slips it over her blouse to block out the cool morning breeze.

_(Rachel)…I want my money back, I want my money back. I want my money back, just enjoy the show…I want my money back, I want my money back. I want my money back…_

Looking at her phone that she just pulled from the back pocket of her jeans, she sees the time and realizes she made it there in perfect timing. She can finally take a breath. Sliding her phone back in her pocket, she heads to her trailer, waving at crew members and fellow actors and actresses along the way, while she finishes singing.

_(Rachel)…just enjoy the show._

Standing outside her trailer, she looks at the golden star over her name and smiles — some things never change. She takes a deep breath and opens the door to enter her assigned space. Then, she turns back around and closes the door behind her. It’s time to get ready for work.

\-------

Walking into the loft after loading what seemed like the millionth suitcase into the cab, Blaine makes his way into Brittany and Santana’s room. “Hey, so anymore bags? Because I think we’re running out of room in the cab.”

Santana frowns and says, “Just one more!” As she tries to push the contents of the bag down so she can zip the suitcase. “If I could just get this stupid thing to close!” She groans, clearly getting frustrated as she practically has to sit on the suitcase to zip it.

Blaine, looking at his Latina friend, comments, “You know it might zip up easier if you folded the clothes first, right?”

This earns him a death glare from Santana and a slight shake of the head from Brittany warning him to not go there.

“Right, well…if you two are ready to head out, we can get you guys to the airport.” Blaine adds, covering up his last comment with a smile at the two girls before turning and walking out of their room, but not before hearing Santana whisper to Brittany, “Seriously, I won’t miss those hideous bowties.”

They all make their way downstairs to where Kurt is waiting, leaning up against the yellow cab. “Thank God! It’s about time! It’s freezing out here!” He exclaims, running his hands up and down his arms to warm himself up.

“You wouldn’t be freezing, Porcelain, if you’d grabbed a bag and helped, but maybe that’s too much to ask from a Lady-Gay. You might break a nail.”

Kurt rolls his eyes and says, “Don’t start Santana!” while Brittany and Blaine just look at each other with light smiles, realizing that this will probably be the last time for a while that they’ll get to hear the familiar sound of Kurt and Santana’s banters.

“So…are we saying goodbye here?” Brittany says, still looking at Blaine.

Blaine shrugs and Santana rolls her eyes and waves her hand, dismissing the comment, “No! We’re late! We can say goodbye at the airport! Come on, let’s go!”

Brittany shares a frown of disappointment with Blaine as Kurt opens the front passenger door and takes a seat. Santana, Brittany and Blaine slide into the back. The driver turns the key in the ignition and the engine roars to life. Brittany and Santana look out the window one last time to the building that was their home for the last few months as the car begins to move forward.

Kurt looks over the passenger seat and sighs. Even though he would never admit it, he’s going to miss the two women in the back seat. However, he is also excited for the new journey ahead of all of them. His eyes’ meet Santana’s and they share an excited smile as Santana starts to sing.

_(Santana)…Another turning point, a fork stuck in the road. Time grabs you by the wrist directs you where to go…_

Santana reaches out to hold Brittany’s hand as she looks out of the window and then back to her friends.

 _(Santana)_ … _So make the best of this test and don’t ask why. It’s not a question, but a lesson learned in time…_

Blaine looks at Kurt who has turned back around in his seat and is currently looking out the front window and trying not to look back. He knows Kurt is upset. He doesn’t like to lose people, let alone important people. Blaine exhales and Santana continues singing.

_(Santana)…It’s something unpredictable, but in the end it’s right. I hope you had the time of your life…_

Kurt finally turns back and they all look at each other and smile before Blaine starts to sing too.

_(Blaine)…So take the photographs and still frames in your mind. Hang it on a shelf, in good health and good time…_

Brittany takes Blaine’s hand and Kurt extends his hand backwards to grab Santana’s. Santana gives him an ‘ _are you serious_ ’ look, but then looks to Brittany who gives her an encouraging nod and the Latina grabs her friend’s hand.

_(Blaine)…Tattoos of memories and dead skin on trial. For what it’s worth it was worth all the while. It’s something unpredictable, but in the end it’s right…_

Blaine looks at Brittany and Santana, who then turn to look at Kurt as the couples begin to sing together.

_(All)…I hope you had the time of your life…_

They all look at each other and smile. The city of New York passes by them as they drive closer and closer to the airport and the song comes to an end.

_(All)…It’s something unpredictable, but in the end it’s right. I hope you had the time of your life. It’s something unpredictable, but in the end it’s right. I hope you had the time of your life…_

Once they reach the airport, they clear the emotion in their throats and wipe the stray tears that have escaped their eyes. Santana puts her emotional walls back up and her bitch mask on before saying, “Well, we’re here…” letting go of everyone’s hands and opening the door of the cab. She steps out and turns back around to offer a hand to the blonde as she steps out of the cab with Kurt and Blaine following right behind them. They make their way to the trunk of the cab and after loading a cart with their bags, make their way to the entrance of the airport to check Brittany and Santana’s luggage.

After all bags are accounted and paid for, the four friends are left standing awkwardly in the middle of the airport. “Well, this is as far as we can go with you guys. So, I guess this is when we say our goodbyes.” Blaine looks to the two woman before him, then looks away trying to hide the tears in his eyes. He moves closer to them and envelops both girls in a hug. “Have a safe flight.” He adds.

“Come on don’t cry.” Brittany says with a smile. “We’ll call as soon as we land.” She turns and gives Kurt a hug too. “I’m going to miss my unicorn.” She adds, the rims of her eyes red as she fights back tears. After dropping her arms from their hug, Brittany steps back and stands next to Santana, biting her bottom lip to keep if from quivering.

Santana’s tough exterior falters a little as she sighs and says, “Oh my god, I think I might actually miss you wonder boys. Come here.” She takes a step up and opens both of her arms welcoming them both into a hug.

Blaine steps back first from the awkward hug. Kurt leans back and looks at Santana whose eyes are downcast hiding the impending tears that she swore she would not let fall. “Oh don’t start with the sappy stuff.” Kurt tells her with a laugh. “What happened to my Satan?” He asks as he gives her a hug. She looks up through her lashes at Kurt and just gives him a small laugh before stepping back beside her girlfriend. She straightens her back and puts a stoic look on her face.

Brittany remains standing, frozen in her spot, no longer able to fight the tears as they roll down her cheeks. With her bottom lip slightly poked out she sobs out, “I’m going to really miss you guys.” She turns toward Santana and sees her girlfriend standing there waiting for her with a sad comforting look and an open hand reaching in her direction. The blonde grabs the Latina’s hand and they both wave their last goodbyes and head over to go through security.

Kurt and Blaine watch them until they are all the way through the security clearing and are no longer visible. Kurt clears his throat and turns to Blaine with an indifferent look on his face and asks “Ready to go?” Blaine nods to his fiance and they lace their fingers together and head out of the airport entrance. As they stand on the sidewalk, Kurt tries to wave down a cab. Blaine leans in to him and whispers, “Admit it, you’re so going to miss Santana.”

Kurt puts his hand down as a yellow cab pulls up in front of them. He reaches for the door handle and opens the door letting Blaine slide in first **.**

Kurt slides into his seat and sighs loudly. He then turns to the dark haired boy and says, “Oh shut up. She can’t know that. I’d never hear the end of it." causing Blaine to emit a playful laugh. After they give the driver the address back to the loft, Kurt leans back in his seat and takes his fiance’s hand and says, “Ready to go to our home.” Blaine nods and they both smile at the idea of finally living alone together.

\-------

The WMHS cafeteria is noisy as ever. Voices shouting, dishes dropping and hundreds of conversations fill the space. All the tables are filled with students who gather to spend some time together. The table with the football team and the Cheerios is the loudest, followed by the one with the basketball team and their always giggling set of girlfriends. The cafeteria is always the loudest room in the school, however, at one table, only an awkward silence is present. All the people sitting there are watching closely to one of its members.

Unique and Marley look at each other debating whether to pop out the question or not. Jake mouths to Ryder. _“What is he doing here?”_ And Ryder shrugs not knowing the answer. Kitty looks between her friends and the strange member at their table because he looks oblivious to the evident awkwardness. The Cheerio, taking full advantage of her ability to ask the mean questions, speaks up.

“Okay, enough with the silent glances, if no one will speak up, I will. Maybe it’s because I’m a bitch and kind of don’t care about other people's feelings, but I can’t take this anymore. Sam, or should I call you Mr. Evans now? I’m sort of confused. Anyways, what are you doing here?”

The stranger, who is none other than Sam Evans, looks up from his food and still chewing his halfway eaten peanut butter sandwich replies. “Having lunch…?” He says, confusion present in his voice as he takes another bite of his sandwich.

Kitty rolls her eyes. “Evidently…but why in here? I mean, aren’t you supposed to be a teacher now? Teachers have their own private lunch room.”

Sam shrugs and continues eating his sandwich just adding. “I don’t like it there…”

Kitty is about to ask him why when a familiar voice resounds through the cafeteria walls.

“Hi there!”

All the students turn around to see who is announcing her arrival at the place. Sam’s eyes just widen because he already knows to whom that voice belongs.

Unique and Marley stand up immediately from the table and run to hug the new guest. “Mercedes! Oh my God! What are you doing here? I thought you were still on tour! Oh my God! How was it? We read a note about you in the local newspaper! I swear, girl, you’re my inspiration!” Unique rambles excitedly.

Marley smiles. “Did you just arrive? You must be tired. Come and join us. We’re having lunch!”

The three friends walk back toward the table with big grins on their faces. Ryder and Jake stand up to give her a quick hug with Kitty, who joins the welcoming greetings. The kids ask Mercedes about her tour and while replying she side glances Sam, who’s just ignoring her.

She frowns a bit confused and before continuing with the details of all the fun she had on her tour, she faces the blond man. “Hi, Sam…Aren’t you going to give me a hello hug too?” She asks timidly. Sam smiles, feeling a bit uncomfortable, and stands up to give her a quick and very awkward hug that ends when a very annoying voice joins the little encounter.

“Aretha? What are you doing here?” Sue says, using her very well-known sarcastic voice. Mercedes along with the rest of the table look around and see a very shocked coach Sue dressed in her usual red track suit.

Mercedes smiles, adding, “Nice to see you too Coach Sue.”

Sue frowns and adds, “Principal.” Mercedes smiles and Sue turns around, noticing Sam. “Mr. Evans! What are you doing here? Teachers eat at the teachers lounge! Don’t forget you’re not a student anymore!” Sam nods and without saying another word takes his tray and walks away. Mercedes looks around confused and the rest of the table just shrug. Sue starts to walk away while saying, “I really don’t get it, some become teachers, others just can’t leave this place. What is it with you Glee Club people? Nevermind, why do I even bother? You Glee kids never leave anyway!”

Mercedes, Kitty, Marley, Unique, Ryder and Jake all look at each other before eventually bursting out laughing, knowing that Sue is completely right. They just never left.

\-------

The plane is already crowded. People keep walking through the aisles placing their bags in the small compartments located above their seats. Santana takes her seat next to the window and Brittany settles herself next to her. The blonde girl starts to bounce in her seat excited for the upcoming adventure that they are going to begin. Santana, trying to hide her fears, looks out the window. Brittany notices the look on Santana’s face and asks. “What’s wrong? Are you nervous about flying? I can hold your hand the whole time like I did when we went to Chicago with Mercedes…”

Santana gives her girlfriend a shy smile trying not to worry her. “No, I’m not nervous about flying, I guess I’m just nervous about moving that’s all.” The Latina shrugs as if her worries weren’t that big of a deal.

Brittany’s excited smile falls from her face. She can’t help but think that her girlfriend is having second thoughts about them moving to L.A. together. Santana notices the change in Brittany’s demeanor and immediately clarifies. “Wait! No! It’s not what you’re thinking! It’s not us moving together that I’m worried about. Well, it is…okay, that didn’t come out right.” The brunette takes a deep breath collecting her thoughts and then starts over. “Britt, I wanna move with you. I promise, I do. Moving with you is the one thing about this whole thing that I’m one hundred percent sure about. Believe me, we could move to Canada or the North Pole and I’d still be happy because I’m with you. Being completely honest, having you here with me right now and knowing you’ll be there every step along the way is the only thing that is keeping me attached to this seat and not climbing down the plane to go back to the loft.” She chuckles. “I’m just scared about the unknown. We’re taking this big step with no real plan. It’s like we’re just throwing a coin into the air and hoping it lands on heads and that scares me. I guess what I was trying to say is that I’m nervous about moving to L.A. with you because when I moved to New York I had no plan, but I only had _me_ to worry about, and I didn’t really care then if I messed up my life. I mean, I do have some auditions lined up and I’m sure you’ll find a way to keep dancing once we establish ourselves there and whatever you want to do, you know I’ll support your decision, but I’m still scared. I don’t want to fail, but most importantly I don’t want to fail you–.” Santana rambles and Brittany just smiles again. The blonde leans over and silences the ranting girl with her lips pressed to the soft full ones of the brunette.

“That got you to shut up,” Brittany chuckles. “You won’t fail me. Santana...being with you makes me feel alive, and happier than I ever thought possible, especially since Lord Tubbington started selling naked photos of himself on the internet the year before I met you.” Santana lets out a teary laugh before Brittany continues to talk. “We don’t need a lot, we could go to L.A. and end up living in a cardboard box next to other urban campers and I’d still be happy…simply because I’m with you.” Santana smiles at her girlfriend because she always knows what to tell her to make her feel better. Brittany smiles back and gives her calmed girlfriend a quick peck on the lips.

“You really are the smartest person I know.” Santana says.

Brittany smiles and nods. “I know.”

Santana laughs and kisses her girl, briefly whispering into her lips. “I love you.”

Brittany whispers back, “I love you too…” while the flight attendant tells them to fasten their seat belts. The plane starts to take off and Brittany holds Santana’s hand mouthing. “Are you ready?”

Santana nods and her face lights up. As the plane settles into the air she starts to sing.

_(Santana)…I am unwritten, can’t read my mind I’m undefined. I’m just beginning, the pen’s in my hand, ending unplanned…_

Brittany sensing that her girlfriend is still a bit unsure of their future together takes control of the song grabbing an empty cup and using it as a microphone.

_(Brittany)…Staring at the blank page before you, open up the dirty window, let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find reaching for something in the distance, so close you can almost taste it release your inhibition…_

Santana smiles at the sweet touch of her girlfriend and spreads her arms almost hitting the guy seated besides them. Brittany laughs and they both continue singing.

_(Santana and Brittany)…Feel the rain on your skin, no one else can feel it for you. Only you can let it in, no one else, no one else can speak the words on your lips. Drench yourself in words unspoken, live your life with arms wide open. Today is where your book begins. The rest is still unwritten…._

Santana takes the cup from Brittany’s hand and without really caring what the people may say she stands up and while walking through the aisle she continues singing.

_(Santana)…I break tradition, sometimes my tries are outside the lines. We’ve been conditioned to not make mistakes, but I can’t live that way!…_

Brittany stands up too and joins her girlfriend who’s dancing through the aisle following the beat of the song. Brittany sings along while the people on the plane stare at them with confused expressions.

_(Brittany)…Staring at the blank page before you, open up the dirty window, let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find reaching for something in the distance, so close you can almost taste it release your inhibitions…_

The fight attendant tries to make them take their respective seats, but Santana and Brittany just laugh and continue singing together.

_(Santana and Brittany)…Feel the rain on your skin, no one else can feel it for you. Only you can let it in, no one else, no one else, can speak the words on your lips. Drench yourself in words unspoken, live your life with arms wide open. Today is where your book begins…The rest is still unwritten…_

A small kid starts to clap excitedly and that gives Brittany and Santana even more of a reason to continue the impromptu performance on the plane.

_(Santana and Brittany)…Feel the rain on your skin, no one else can feel it for you. Only you can let it in, no one else, no one else, can speak the words on your lips. Drench yourself in words unspoken, live your life with arms wide open. Today is where your book begins, the rest is still unwritten…_

The pilot announces the imminent arrival to the city of “Los Angeles” and the girls, still singing, take their seats and secure their seat belts clapping along the way.

_(Santana and Brittany)…Staring at the blank page before you open up the dirty window, let the sun illuminate the words that you could not find reaching for something in the distance, so close you can almost taste it release your inhibitions…_

The plane lands and the girls take their bags from the compartments walking along with the other passengers to the arrival gates.

_(Santana and Brittany)…Feel the rain on your skin, no one else can feel it for you. Only you can let it in no one else, no one else, can speak the words on your lips. Drench yourself in words unspoken, live your life with arms wide open. Today is where your book begins…Feel the rain on your skin, no one else can feel it for you. Only you can let it in, no one else, no one else, can speak the words on your lips. Drench yourself in words unspoken, live your life with arms wide open. Today is where your book begins…_

They reach the escalators. Santana is looking through her purse not paying much attention to her surroundings when Brittany gasps in excitement. The Latina turns around and smiles. A _‘Welcome to Los Angeles’_ sign is displayed in front of them.

_(Santana)…The rest is still unwritten…The rest is still unwritten…The rest is still unwritten_

As the music fades and the escalators go down, Brittany and Santana share a sweet kiss. They had just made their first ink blot on their blank page of their new lives.

\------- 

Rachel sits in her trailer as she looks over her scripts for the day like she always does before shooting. The place is nice, not big, but big enough for her and the couple of people who are always near to help her, to be comfortable enough. While looking over her scripts, Rachel hears someone knock on her trailer door.

“Come in! It’s open!” She calls.

The door opens and her very nice and handsome co-star walks in. He’s smiling at her with a large white-toothed smile like he does every morning.

“Is Miss Berry ready to head to set?” He asks, a fake sense of politeness shown in his voice.

“You can drop the polite act, you dork.” Rachel replies. “By the way, I got your text this morning.” She adds.

The confident guy smiles and makes himself at home taking a seat next to Rachel on the small, but very comfy couch, which covers almost half of the trailer. Rachel looks at the man beside her and puts her script down. The guy, giving her a big, bright, flashing smile, asks. “So…what are your plans for this weekend?”

Rachel smiles coyly and replies. “I already told you. I’ll probably just stay home and rehearse…” He gives her a playful look and she says, “Why are you looking at me like that Wesley Grey?”

He laughs and says, “Ouch…Wesley Grey.”

She smiles. “Well, that’s your name, isn’t it?”

Wesley nods. “Yeah, but I like Wes better.”

Rachel laughs and adds. “Well, Wes Better…to answer your first question, because you won’t answer mine, I am ready to go to set. You don’t have to walk me to set every morning, you know…”

Wes nods and then takes the script from Rachel’s hands and places it next to him saying, “I know, but what kind of cast mate would I be if I didn’t escort you to set everyday?”

Rachel laughs and, standing up to hide her now very excited eyes, adds, “A normal one?”

Wes bursts into laughter and glances at his wrist watch. “I’m glad I’ve never considered myself normal…shall we?” Rachel nods and grabs Wes’ arm and they walk out, closing the door of Rachel’s trailer behind them.

As they walk together, Wesley swings Rachel’s arm high in the air and she laughs. “You’re such a dork.”

When they make it to the show set everybody there is already waiting for them. The director turns around and let’s out a big and resounding “Finally!” Rachel and Wesley smile at each other and take their places to start rehearsing.

“Guys, we’re starting with the small fight scene. Rachel remember that you have to show how mad you are because he betrayed you, okay? He talked to your friends and that’s stepping over the line, got it?” Rachel nods and starts making faces to get into her character while the director gives Wes his instructions. The extras are placed on their respective spots and the director yells, “Action in 3, 2, 1…”

Rachel completely turned into her character walks over and pushes Wes from behind. Wes turns around and saying his line, he yells, “What’s your problem! Why are you pushing me like that! What did I do this time?”

Rachel replies with her line, “What did you do? Oh, please, Ben! Don’t act so surprised! You know what you did!”

Wes forgets his next line and stepping out of character he says, “No I don’t…”

Rachel expecting to hear a very different line bursts into laughter and the director exclaims, “Cut!”

Wes and Rachel look at each other and can’t stop laughing.

“Guys please! We’re trying to work! Let’s try it again, okay?” Rachel and Wes still laughing nod and return to their first marks. “Action in 3…2…1…”

Rachel repeats the same she did in the last scene and when Wes turns around they both start to laugh again. The director rolls his eyes and knowing this is probably not going to works says, “Okay, you know what? Take five! Go and laugh all you want, but I need you both ready and completely focused on doing this, okay?”

Wes and Rachel nod and they look at each other playfully. “You know…maybe if you weren’t so concerned with walking me to set, you would have time to actually learn your lines.” Rachel whispers.

“Oh, Shut up…” Wes laughs, playfully pushing her before going off in search of a script, so he can actually learn his lines.

\------- 

Kurt and Blaine step out of the elevator and onto the third floor of their building. Walking to the huge metal door to their loft, Kurt slides the door open allowing Blaine to walk in first. The former Warbler takes the scarf off from around his neck and hangs it by the the front door. He continues to undress himself by slipping his black wool military styled jacket down his arms and on the hook with his scarf. Kurt closes the door behind his fiance and sets his scarf and jacket across the small table by the front door before making his way to the kitchen. That’s when he feels a strong soft hand taking hold of his hand. Kurt turns around with a smile and a questioning eyebrow. ** **  
****

Blaine saunters up to his fiance with a lopsided smirk and with a soft voice dripping with unbridled romanticism he says, “We finally have this place to ourselves…” he trails off with a sparkle of lust in his eyes, “You know what that means…don’t you?”

Kurt grows a huge smile and with excitement evident in his voice, he says, “Yes! We can finally get uninterrupted wedding planning done!”

Kurt steps out of Blaine’s embrace and runs to the left side of the couch to open a small chest that sits there posing as a side table with a lamp on it. He pulls out a huge binder with papers stuffed every which way and then makes his way back to the dining table. Setting the prodigious black leathered binder on the table and flipping it open. Kurt claps his hands in excitement, oblivious to the sulky expression that his fiance’s face possesses.

Rolling his eyes and letting out a disappointed sigh, Blaine lets his arms fall to his sides in defeat. _Was it so bad to want to be close to his fiance on their first night in their home alone?_ Deflating his shoulders, he turns towards their bathroom and says, “Okay, well I guess I’m just going to take a shower…” Blaine then lifts his hands to the edges of his shirt and lifts it over his head, leaving his upper half bare. He waits for a second to see if he gets any reaction from the man he loves. But after a few seconds pass by and there is no sign of Kurt even looking up from the pages sprawled out before him; Blaine continues his path to the bathroom, “Alone…I guess…” He whispers.

Kurt, who has his head resting on his left hand and is using his right to flip through the numerous amounts of pages, replies, “Yep, have fun with that…I’ll be out here, arranging _our_ wedding details.” He mumbles, rolling his eyes and focusing his thoughts back on wedding planning.

Blaine passes by his distracted fiance heading to the bathroom and tries again to make him change his mind. “Are you sure you don’t want to join me? The water is going to be so warm. You’ll probably even forget that it’s actually snowing outside.” The dark haired man questions his lover in a sensual tone.

Kurt a bit irritated raises his voice and snaps. “No, Blaine! I really need to get things started. This is important, okay…”

Blaine rolls his eyes and without saying another word, walks to the bathroom and slams the door shut. Kurt exhales and looks at the closed bathroom door. A spark of regret, for having turned down his fiance, flashes through his blue eyes.

\------- 

Sam walks into the auditorium with his hands in his pockets and his bottom lip between his teeth. It’s safe to say he’s nervous. He hasn’t seen Mercedes since he left New York before her tour. He can’t lie and say that this isn’t awkward for him. He can’t quite figure out why, but she has this strange effect on him and Sam is trying so hard not to let her get inside his heart. The blonde man keeps his eyes downcast to the floor because he knows his strength will resolve if he looks into those warm brown eyes. “So you wanted to see me…?” His eyes flicker up from the floor to her, he sees the nervous look Mercedes wears. “I-I figured we could come in here for a bit more privacy, ya k-know since I’m a teacher here now and all. It’s kind of awkward sometimes having other people listen into your conversations.” Sam lets a smile grace his big lips before he shaving his head and looking away in embarrassment from his stuttering words.

“I made a mistake!” Mercedes blurts out, causing Sam to whip his head back to her with wide eyes. “I mean…..I don’t think we should have broken up…It-it was a mistake.” Sam looks at her confused and panicked. “I know I was about to leave for a tour and you were coming back here and things were complicated, but I think we could’ve made it work…I should of made it work. Sam, you have no idea how much I’ve missed you. I made a huge mistake by letting us split up just because things were going to be hard. I mean, they say the best things in life are worth fighting for, right?”

“Stop, just stop. I don’t think this conversation is such a good idea…” Sam starts to walk up the aisles of the auditorium towards the doors.

“But, why? I love you, Sam, and I know you love me. We made a mistake, but we can make it right now. I’ll do whatever it takes. We can even re-evaluate some of the limits I said I was not willing to cross.” Mercedes voices gets a pitch higher as she pleads for Sam to stay and hear her out.

The blond man presses his lips together in a tight line as he fights himself not to cry in front of her. “Don’t, please don’t! Listen…I’m not sure if this is what I want anymore.”

He goes to take another step towards the door when Mercedes’ hand stops him by resting on his shoulder. “Sam, look at me and tell me you don’t still love me.” Her voice quivers with emotion and she stares at him waiting for him to turn around. But he doesn’t. He stands still, staring at the door wishing he could will himself to walk away, but her hand graced his skin and froze him in his spot.

Sam continues to stare at the door like if at some point it might come closer to him. He then hears a soulful melody of adlibs being hummed from the woman behind him.

_(Mercedes)…Hhhhaa, yeahhhhh, whhooo ooohhh, hhhuuuu, hhheeeyyyyy…_

Mercedes softly tugs on his shoulder and gets him to turn around while continuing to sing.

_(Mercedes)…What’s it gonna be? ‘Cuz I can’t pretend don’t you wanna be more than friends? Hold me tight and don’t let go…_

Looking straight in the blonde’s eyes, she sings.

_(Mercedes)…Don’t let go…_

She is looking at him and practically pleading with her voice for him to stay with her through the song.

_(Mercedes)…you have the right to lose control…Don’t let go.._

Tears well up in Sam’s eyes as he lets them drift close, breaking the intense eye contact between the two former lovers.

_(Mercedes)…I often tell myself that we could be more than just friends. I know you think that if we move too soon it would all end. I live in misery when you’re not around and I won’t be satisfied till we’re taking those vows…_

Mercedes ushers Sam down the aisle to sit in the front row seat. She continues to sing as she makes her way to the stage.

_(Mercedes)…There’ll be some love makin’, heart breakin’, soul shakin’ love. Love makin’, heart breakin’, soul shakin’…_

Taking center stage, Mercedes faces Sam and pours out her heart and soul through every lyric she sings.

_(Mercedes)…What’s it gonna be? ‘Cuz I can’t pretend. Don’t you want to be more than friends? Hold me tight and don’t let go. Don’t let go! You have the right to lose control…Don’t let go…_

Sam’s eyes overflow with tears that he can no longer hold back. Every word Mercedes sings is hitting home so deeply, but he isn’t ready to think or deal with any of the feelings that are rising within his chest.

_(Mercedes)…I often fantasize the stars above are watching you, they know my heart, it speaks to yours like only lovers do. If I could wear your clothes I’d pretend I was you and lose control…There’ll be some love makin’, heart breakin’, soul shakin’ love. Love makin’, heart breakin’, soul shakin’…What’s it gonna be? ‘cuz I can’t pretend. Don’t you want to be more than friends? Hold me tight and don’t let go. Don’t let go! You have the right to lose control…Don’t let go…_

The diva belts out the next verse, with more emotion than she had ever put into a song before. It is like she can feel the emotion flowing from her chest through her vocal chords and out in the air for Sam to hear.

_(Mercedes)…Runnin in and outta my life has got me so confused. You gotta make the sacrifice, somebody’s gotta choose.We can make it if we try for the sake of you and I…together we can make it right…._

Sam stands up to his feet and starts to walk back up the aisle to the door that leads to the hallway. He can’t take this anymore. He wishes she would have never showed up. He was learning to be okay without her, or at least he thought he was. But now that sinking, overwhelming feeling is back in his chest and he needs to run from it. Running off the stage to catch up to the blond man, Mercedes sings even louder.

_(Mercedes)…(Can’t keep a running) (In and outta my life outta my outta my life) (You’ve got the right, you’ve got the right, I said you’ve got the right to loooose controol yeah) What’s it gonna be? ‘cuz I can’t pretend. Don’t you want to be more than friends? Hold me tight and don’t let go. Don’t let go! You have the right to lose control…Don’t let go…_

Mercedes looks to Sam, begging him to stay and give their love a chance. He pauses with his hand on the door handle. Then, without turning his head, he casts his eyes to the side and sees Mercedes breaking down while trying to sing her heart out.

_(Mercedes)…Don’t let go…Don’t let go…What’s it gonna be? ‘cuz I can’t pretend. Don’t you want to be more than friends? Hold me tight and don’t let go. Don’t let go! You have the right to lose control…Don’t let go…_

Wiping the few tears that have betrayed him, Sam pulls on the door and continues to walk out into the hallway leaving Mercedes behind in the auditorium. Mercedes can feel her heart breaking all over again watching Sam walk away from her. She stands there staring at the door with tears running down her face as she silently finishes the song. She prays that Sam will turn back around, burst through the door and pull her into a heated kiss so they can live happily ever after — like in the movies.

_(Mercedes)…What’s it gonna be? (don’t let go) Don’t you want to be (don’t let go) Hold me tight and don’t let go (don’t let go)…_

But, he doesn’t come back because this isn’t a movie. It’s real life, and the love of her life has just walked away, but she was right before, when she said the best things in life were worth fighting for; and that is exactly what she plans to do. She is going to fight and get Sam back.

\------- 

Brittany and Santana move through the crowd after stepping off the escalator and make their way to the long line at the baggage claim while Santana rants about something that happened on the plane; However, Brittany isn’t paying much attention to anything other than the growling sounds coming from her stomach. The blonde is looking around to see what restaurants are near the baggage claim, hoping that they can stop and grab some food before hailing a cab to take them to their destination. The dancer is quickly brought from her thoughts when she catches the end of Santana’s rant. “…And I swear our kids will never act like that in public, hell, in private either. My abuela would have bent me over her knee right then and there in front of everyone on the plane.”

“Wait, what did you just say?!” Brittany stares at her girlfriend with a smile and wide eyes when she hears the _‘our kids’_ comment.

Santana looks over at the blonde, “You haven’t been listening to me, have you?” She smiles sweetly to the taller girl. ** **  
****

“No, I have, I just zoned out for a second.” Brittany says, softly covering for herself.

“Your stomach's growing again?” Santana questions, knowing her girlfriend well enough. “Don’t worry Britt, we can grab some food before we leave. We just gotta get our bags first, the rest of our stuff should arrive tomorrow morning.”

The Latina spots their bags through the crowd and pushes through the herd of people grabbing their bags off the conveyor belt. Brittany finds her way to the tanned girl and grabs for Lord Tubbington’s carrier. Looking inside it, she sees the huge cat still sleeping. Pushing a finger through the gap between the metal bar of the cage she rubs her index finger along his forehead, as a slight pout became evident on her face Santana says, “He’s okay, B, he’s just sleeping, remember? I bet he’s dreaming and loving the extra rest he’s getting.” She runs a hand down the small of her girlfriend’s back trying to soothe her.

“Yeah, you’re right. He does need the rest. He had a late night saying goodbye to the street racing gang he was a part of in New York. I bet he’s having a Britney fantasy right now.” The tall blonde smiles widely.

After finally making it out of the chaos around the baggage claim, Santana stops off to the side of the rushing traffic of people around them and pulls Brittany to the side with her. “There’s a Panda Express over there.” She points to her right, “Do you wanna grab something real quick, then we can hail a cab?”

Brittany nods. “Oh, god yes!” Smiling and practically dragging Santana over to the restaurant.

Sitting down for a quick lunch, Santana watches her girlfriend in amusement as Brittany scarfs down a plate of Kung Pao chicken and two spring rolls. Sipping on her Mojito lemonade the Latina runs her eyes over the blonde wondering where all the food went. “Is it good?” Santana chuckles.

“Mmhmm,” Brittany moans swallowing the food that was still in her mouth. “L.A. food is so much better than New York’s, this is delicious.” Scrunching her brows in confusion, Santana looks at Brittany with her head slightly angled in thought.

“Umm, Britt…it’s Panda Express, they have it in New York too, actually we just had it a couple weeks ago.” Brittany looks up and shakes her head,

“Well, look…” Brittany points over to the employees on the other side of the counter. “They have real Chinese people working for them.”

Santana follows the blonde’s finger and looks at the employees, “Britt …they’re Hispanic, not Chinese.”

Brittany then leans in closer to her girlfriend raising her upper body across the table and whispers, “No, they’re not really Hispanic. They’re just disguised, so people don’t know they are actually from China, because that’s cheating, but I can tell the difference.” Brittany shrugs her shoulders as if the statement is just simple facts. Santana just smiles softly at the blonde haired woman in front of her. She loves the way Brittany views the world, it always seems to remind her of the innocence that is still alive, that not everyone and everything is so horrible. Brittany is one of those amazing, beautiful, and innocent things and she feels her chest swell with emotion knowing that she is able to call the stunning woman across from her hers.

Santana shakes her head realizing that she has just been staring at her girlfriend for a good ten minutes when she sees the blush that bestows the alabaster skin of Brittany’s cheeks. It still amazes her how after all these years of knowing each other they can still make each other blush. Well, not her, since she’s an ethnic woman and they don’t blush, or at least she wouldn’t admit to the numerous times she felt the heat in her cheeks due to a slight glance, bat of eyelashes, or a flash of a sultry smile from the taller woman.

Clearing her throat she looks to Brittany’s plate which is now empty and asks “You all done?”

Brittany wipes her face with her napkin then places the napkin on the tray of trash and smiles while giving the brunette a nod. Santana lifts the tray and dumps it in the nearest waste bin. She grabs her and Brittany's rolling suitcases, leaving the cat carrier for Brittany to carry. She looks over her shoulder to the blonde and says, “Alright let’s go use our New Yorker charm and steal someone’s cab so we don’t have to wait any longer.” Santana smirks.

“San…” Brittany gives her girlfriend a pointed look.

“Kidding, B.” Santana walks through the airport’s automatic doors to the sidewalk outside with Brittany quickly behind her, “…sort of…” She whispers under her breath.

After about 10 full minutes of trying to get a cab. One finally pulls up to the curb in front of them. “Thank god! That was worse than New York!”

After putting their luggage into the trunk of the cab, Santana walks to the back seat doors and opens it for the tall blonde to slide in, placing Lord Tubbington’s carrier to the left of her while Santana slides in on her right. “You got the address right Britt?” Santana looks to her girlfriend for confirmation.

“Yep.” Brittany nods and digs her hand into her front pants pocket and slips Santana the paper with the correct address on it. Santana reads the address off to the cab driver, who puts it into his GPS and then slowly pull away from the curb.

Santana has a hand placed on Brittany’s thigh, she looks down to see the jostling movement of the blonde’s leg bobbing up and down. She lets her eyes flicker up from the toned legs hidden under the dancers blue colored pants to her lover’s face and she can see Brittany squirm with excitement barely keeping herself from jumping out of her seat. “I can’t wait to see the look on her face when she sees us! I bet she misses Lord Tubbington _so_ much!”

Santana chuckles. “Yeah, I bet.” Not letting her annoyance from the cat show too much. Sighing she continues, “But, yeah, I guess even I am a little excited to see Man Hands.” Looking from out the cab window back to her girlfriend who is giving her the ‘ _Santana be nice'_ lookthat Santana has never been able to resist. _But, then again, who could resist her after getting served that adorable pout?_ Letting a smile grace her lips for what seems like the thousandth time today and the billionth since Brittany has been back in her life, she suddenly feels a wave of happiness striking her and making her feel a bit uneasy in the best possible way.

Brittany notices the watery look in the Latina’s eyes and asks, “Hey, are you crying?”

The concerned voice from her lover rips Santana from her thoughts. Pressing her lips in a tight line, making sure to keep her taunting tears at bay and fighting back the emotion that has a lump stuck in her through, she speaks, “No, I’m just really happy.”

\------- 

Kurt slides open the door of the loft and enters carrying a bunch of grocery bags. He hurries his way to drop them on the kitchen table because they’re very heavy. Blaine enters the place too, carrying a similar amount of bags and leaves them at the table next to the others. Kurt winces at the sight of the millions of things they have to store. Sighing in defeat, he starts to take the contents out of the bags. Blaine looks around and does the same thing. While they are stocking all the stuff into the cabinets and the refrigerator Blaine casually says, “I’m glad I convinced you to go out for a while…I thought you’d be stuck to that planning book all day.” Kurt just laughs and Blaine continues. “I’m serious, I thought you said you wanted a long engagement…”

Kurt turns around from the kitchen counter in which he was stocking some cans and with a big frown on his face, he asks, “Are you trying to tell me we should keep waiting to get married?”

Blaine immediately shakes his head quite alarmed, “No! Of course not! You know I can’t wait to get married. I’m just surprised that you’re so enthusiastic about it…I didn’t know you had that book.” he points over to the over stuffed binder that was barely being kept closed, then drifting his eyes back to the boy he loves, he adds, “I thought you wanted to wait a little longer…”

Kurt smiles and walks closer to reach his fiance. “Why wouldn’t I be excited about our wedding? I know that maybe I’ve changed a bit, but I’m still me and you know that my wedding is something I’ve always dreamed about and have been planning since I was five years old, so of course I’m excited about it! I’m thrilled about it, and yes, I’m enjoying the long engagement, but it’s time we start to settle things a bit, don’t you think? I mean, it’s not like we’re going to get married tomorrow, but a wedding can’t plan itself, let alone my wedding! So that’s why I have to do it…Our wedding has to be perfect!”

Blaine smiles warmly at his fiance and gives him a quick peck on the lips followed by a, “Did you know I love you?”

Kurt laughs and replies, “Yeah, I had a hunch, but thanks for letting me know.”

Blaine grabs Kurt’s waist to pull him even closer asking, “A hunch, huh?” Kurt nods playfully and Blaine rolls his eyes smiling.

“What?” Kurt asks.

Blaine shakes his head and says, “Nothing, I don’t know why you say you’ve changed…for me you’re still the same lovely boy who stole my heart all those years ago.”

Kurt kisses his fiance and gives him a pat on the chest “Now, let’s cook some dinner! We need to celebrate our very first night alone in this place!”

The cooking dinner process was always a challenge when they both wanted to please the other. The boys usually ended up preparing too much food. When the rest of the gang was still living with them the leftovers were never a problem, but now that it was just the two of them, the big bowls with excessive amounts of food didn’t look fine. Blaine looks at Kurt and whispers, “What are we gonna do with all this food? We can’t throw it away and we can eat all of this by ourselves”

Kurt looks at the bowls and nods. “Yeah, we can’t…but I have an idea!” He says pulling out his phone from his jeans pockets.

Blaine looks closely at his blue-eyed fiance who seems to be typing some kind of text. “What are you doing?”

Kurt looks up from his phone and says, “Just texting Chuck and inviting him for dinner tomorrow night!”

Blaine looks down with a simple. “Oh!”

Kurt frowns a little and asks, “Is something wrong?” Blaine shakes his head and takes another bite to avoid having to reply. Kurt puts the phone aside and asks again, “What’s wrong Blaine?”

Blaine shakes his head and says, “Nothing…”

Kurt frowns knowing his fiance is hiding something, but before he can ask again his mind manages to put the pieces together and exclaims, “Oh! I get it! It’s because of Chuck! You’re jealous, aren’t you?”

Blaine shakes his head again. “What? No I’m not jealous, why would I be?” Kurt gives his fiance a knowingly smile and Blaine confesses, “Okay, maybe I’m a bit jealous, but not because of you. I know he’s just your friend and all that, but you do have to admit that he has tried more than once to hit on you. And don’t try to say I’m hallucinating, because I’ve seen it…”

Kurt laughs and stands up from the table to get closer to the adorable pouting man he has in front of him. “I’m not going to deny that. And I also know that you’ve seen it, but you do know I’ve stopped him, right?” Blaine nods. Kurt kisses his fiance’s cheek and asks, “So…are we good?”

Blaine nods again, gives him a quick peck on the lips and says. “Perfect.” Kurt laughs and sits down again to finish his dinner.

Blaine is picking up the dirty dishes while Kurt does the washing up. They always work in perfect synchrony, like clockwork. One moves and the other reacts. By the time they finish with all the dirty dishes the sun has already settle down at the horizon, transforming the city skyline in a purple velvet snowed canvas. Blaine walks over to the window to contemplate the breathtakingly view. Kurt joins standing up behind him and leaning his head on his fiance’s shoulder.

“This city is beautiful, isn’t it?” Kurt asks. Blaine nods, unable to speak. “You’re very quiet, are you okay?” Kurt asks again.

Blaine nods. “Yeah, I’m just trying to get used to the idea of calling this place and this city our home. It’s weird, but it wasn’t until today that I finally felt that I could call this place _‘home’_ … If you know what I mean.”

Kurt nods. “I know, that’s exactly how I feel. I’m finally home. From now on this is officially the Anderson-Hummel house! Or Hummel-Anderson? We need to talk about that!”

Blaine laughs and shakes his head, “Okay, we’ll talk about it later, right now I have other plans for us!” Kurt frowns confused while his fiance walks away.

Blaine reaches the iPod dock and starts looking for a song. Kurt, guessing his fiance’s intentions shakes his head saying, “Oh no! We are not going to do that!”

Blaine turns around and asks, “Why not?”

Kurt simply replies, “Because we are not and that’s the end of it!”

Blaine gives his fiance his very special, and frequently used, puppy eyes and begs, “Please? One song?”

Kurt rolls his eyes and using his serious tone he adds, “You know those eyes are not fair! You play dirty! Fine! One song! Make it good!”

Blaine smiles triumphantly and clicks the play button. The notes of a very well-known Michael Buble’s song start to echo in the small apartment. Kurt looks at Blaine and asks, “May I ask if you chose that song for any particular reason?”

Blaine laughs a little and adds, “Maybe.” grabbing Kurt’s waist in the process and singing along while making his fiance spin on the floor.

_(Blaine)…You can dance, every dance with the guy who gives you the eye, let him hold you tight. You can smile, every smile for the man who held your hand beneath the pale moonlight, but don’t forget who’s takin’ you home and in whose arms you’re gonna be. So darlin’ save the last dance for me…_

Kurt smiles playfully and let’s Blaine to lead the dance. He knows Blaine chose that song for a reason, he wanted to show Kurt he trusted him and that when he said that they were good, he really meant it.

_(Blaine)…Oh, I know that the music’s fine like sparklin’ wine, go and have your fun. Laugh and sing but while we’re apart don’t give your heart to anyone. And don’t forget who’s takin’ you home and in whose arms you’re gonna be. So darlin’ save the last dance for me…_

Blaine, taking full advantage of Kurt’s willingness makes him dance through the whole apartment, giving him small spins, leaning his body down and kissing him every opportunity he gets. Kurt, who knows the lyrics of the songs backwards and forwards, takes the lead in the next verse trying to reassure his love how much he really loves him

_(Kurt)…Baby, don’t you know I love you so? Can’t you feel it when we touch? I will never, never let you go. I love you, oh, so much…_

Blaine smiles and they both continue with the next verse while Kurt smiles and makes funny faces with each line of the song.

_(Kurt and Blaine)…You can dance, go and carry on till the night is gone and it’s time to go. If he asks if you’re all alone can he walk you home? You must tell him, “No”. ‘Cause don’t forget who’s taking you home and in whose arms you’re gonna be. Save the last dance for me…_

When the song reaches the bridge Blaine makes Kurt spin and leans his body down to finally give him a deep kiss.

_(Kurt)…Oh, I know that the music’s fine like sparklin’ wine, go and have your fun. Laugh and sing but while we’re apart don’t give your heart to anyone and don’t forget who’s takin’ you home and in whose arms you’re gonna be. So, darlin’, save the last dance for me…_

Kurt stops the kiss to continue singing despite Blaine’s complaining pout. The verse flows and Blaine joins the song helping to harmonize the last line.

_(Kurt and Blaine)…So don’t forget who’s taking you home or in whose arms you’re gonna be. So, darling, save the last dance for me…_

They both use the song to promise each other to always be there no matter what. Smiles and heart eyes go back and forth between them.

_(Blaine)….Oh, baby won’t you save the last dance for me?…_

Blaine pulls Kurt’s body closer and sings into his ear making Kurt’s body to shiver from head to toe.

_(Kurt)….Ooh, you make the promise that you save the last dance for me…._

Kurt sings the next line and pushes Blaine near the couch. Blaine’s eyes widen in excitement and with one last movement the taller boy knocks down the smaller one making him fall onto his back on the couch.

_(Blaine)…Save the last dance, the very last dance for me._

Blaine, with a huge grin on his face, sings the last line that Kurt brilliantly complements with a sweet kiss.

\------- 

Rachel turns her key in the door pushing it open. Then she steps inside and closes it behind her with her foot. Walking farther into her house, she drops her purse and keys on the lazy-boy chair on the right. Then turns and lets her back crash into the couch that’s pressed up against the far wall of the living room. Putting an arm over her face to cover her eyes, she lets out a sigh. She is just about to drift off into the land of unconsciousness, the day’s events wearing on her, when she is soon brought from her desperately wanted slumber by the chirping sound of her phone.

The brunette springs up into a sitting position grabbing her phone from the coffee table in front of her, tiredness now long forgotten. The former Broadway star’s smile stretches across her cheeks when her phone lights up with Wesley’s name on it. Swiping her finger across the screen she then reads the message out loud to herself. “Did you make it home yet?” Rachel shyly bites her bottom lip while she types out a reply. _“Safe and sound. How about you?”_ ** **  
****

She goes to set her phone back on the table, but before her hand even leaves the device, it chirps again. Looking over the screen she reads the text. “ _Glad no one kidnapped you and yes I’m home now too. Hope you have a great night, get some rest.”_ Pulling her legs up to her chest, leaning back into the sofa cushions, gripping the phone tightly in her hands, she quickly replies. _“Yeah, you’re probably right. You should too, have sweet dreams :)”_ The brunette holds tightly to her phone, tapping unconsciously on the side of it, waiting the short wait for a reply. When it shows, she reads _“I will…”_  The text is short but it makes Rachel think about what he meant by it. Deciding to just ask she types out her question. _“Oh yeah? How are you so sure?”_

Rachel sits curled up and sinking into her couch cushions anxiously waiting for Wes’ explanation. Watching another minute on her phone’s digital clock pass by, the brunette lets out a disappointed sigh. Maybe she was reading into his actions too much, maybe she was interpreting the signals all wrong. Setting her phone down on the armrest of the couch, she slowly gets up and makes her way to her bedroom. ** **  
****

She strips out of her day’s attire and gets into something more comfortable that consist of silky pink pajama pants, a pink and white polka dotted tank top, and covered by a matching pink silky robe. Walking to her white Chippendale style vanity mirror on the right side of her room placed by her dresser, she sits on the bench. Looking into the mirror she picks up a brush and runs it through her hair a couple times. She is about to start her lengthy process of exfoliating the skin on her face when she hears the faint sound of her phone chirping from the living room where she left it.

Leaping out of her seat and sprinting the short distance to her living room, she jumps over the armrest of the couch and plops down in the middle of the couch, grabbing her phone and swiping across the screen to reveal the text she’s been waiting for. _“Because…I’ll be dreaming of you.”_ Reading the text, Rachel lets out a loud squeal. Rocking from side to side in excitement she reads the text over and over again. She presses the reply button and it hits her, she has no idea what to respond to that message. She stands up from the couch and starts pacing her living room trying to think. As she’s pacing she passes a photo of her, Santana, and Kurt that she has hung on the wall over her T.V. from when they went for a walk at the Highline. “Ugh.” She groans “Where’s Kurt when I need him?” She sits down in her lazy-boy chair and lets out a deep sigh. Scratching her forehead she types out the only reply she can think of, _“In that case I’ll let you rest…see you tomorrow.”_

When she presses the send button she immediately hits herself on the forehead, _“I’ll let you rest! Really Rachel? God you really need some advice…I don’t remember this ever being this hard…_ _it’s been a while since the last time you did this!_ ” She whispers to herself walking back to her bedroom.

When she reaches the room she crawls into her bed laying on top of the covers. With her phone still in her left hand she uses her right to scroll through her phone and not stopping until she spots _Kurt Hummel_ in her phone’s contacts. Hovering over the call button, Rachel hesitates for a moment. She feels like she needs to talk to her best friend about everything that is going on lately, but part of her feels guilty for wanting to talk to Kurt about her crush on another guy. A guy who isn’t Finn. If she was being honest with herself she was feeling guilty about being interested in someone else who isn’t Finn, and now here she is wanting to call his step-brother to talk about another guy. She sits there a little longer with her finger over the green button on the screen of her phone while chewing the inside of her cheek. She takes a deep breath and lets it out slowly. Finally giving in, she presses the button and lifts the phone to her ear and hears the first ring. After all, Kurt is still her best friend.

\------- 

Kurt sits on the far right side of the couch with Blaine laying horizontally, his head resting on Kurt’s lap. The blue-eyed boy is watching the end credits from the musical they had just seen scrolling up the screen. Kurt looks down to his fiance and sees the colors from the T.V. screen lights flash across his lover’s peaceful slumbering face. A warm smile spreads across his face, the fair skinned boy softly runs his hand through the curly almost gel free hair of the boy laying across him.

Suddenly, his phone that is laying on the small wooden table beside him, lights up and the ring echoes through the room. Kurt hurries to grab the offending object quickly to silence it hoping it doesn’t wake his fiance. Pressing the button with the green phone icon, he brings the phone to his ear.

“Hello?” He questions, having not looked at the caller ID before answering.

 _“Kurt, good you’re still up!”_ Rachel is heard through the phone. Kurt squints to look towards the clock from the microwave and it reads 12:23 A.M.

“Um, yeah, I’m still up.” His voice sounds questioning. “Hold on one second Rachel let me go in the other room, Blaine fell asleep while we were watching Phantom of the Opera and I don’t wanna wake him…yet.” Kurt stands up carefully and gently lifts Blaine’s head up enough to shuffle out from underneath him, and rests it on top of a throw pillow. Then, Kurt takes his phone call into their shared bedroom.

Once in the room he pulls the curtain closed which poses as a door to their bedroom. He hopes it might act as some barrier to keep the sounds of their chatter from drifting to the sleeping Blaine that is still pressed into the back of the couch. “Okay, so, what’s up Rache, are you okay? It’s kind of late.” Kurt sits at the edge of his bed.

“ _Yeah I’m okay, I think…”_ she trails off wondering how she is going to bring the topic up to Kurt.

“Okay, spill!” Kurt crosses his arm across his chest while still holding the phone with his right hand. “I know you, Rachel, and I know that you also know it’s past midnight here and you wouldn’t have called if something wasn’t on your mind. So come on and tell your amazing friend what’s going on.” He laughs at himself.

Rachel opens and closes her mouth about five times, hesitating on how to tell Kurt about Wes. Noticing Rachel’s hesitation Kurt speaks up, “Rachel, you know you can tell me anything, right? We’re best friends. No matter where in the world we are, we will always be there for each other.”

He hears Rachel taking in a deep breath before start talking. More like rambling off really fast, like she was pushing the words out of her mouth before they had time to retreat to the back of her throat. _“So there’s this guy, Wesley. I think I’ve mentioned him before to you. Well yes, I know I have, but only as the guy who co-stars on my show, but now there’s more I need to tell you, but I’m not sure how to tell you because all I can think about is that you’ll hate me because of Finn, but you are my best friend Kurt and I kind of really need my best friend to talk to right now and I can’t call Santana because you know she’ll probably just make fun of me or try to find out his social security number to do a background check after what happened with Brody, and Kurt I-”_

“Whoa, whoa, Rachel! Let me stop you there and back it on up and let me get a word in. Now take a deep breath."He hears Rachel take in her first breath since she started talking and exhale it slowly, “Okay, good, so Wesley, the guy from your show?”

The brunette lets out a, _“Mhmmm,”_ and Kurt can practically hear Rachel nodding through the phone. “I’m going to take a wild guess after that rant and say that you like him?” Kurt says trying to piece together the puzzle Rachel laid out for him.

 _“Uh huh,”_ Rachel says quietly, going on to softly explain the events that have happened between her and Wesley since the day their first met. How it started out as just shy glances over the shoulder at each other when off set, then when he started showing up to her trailer everyday offering to walk her to set. How on their long walks to set they would talk about anything and everything. She tells Kurt about what a good listener he is, and how he seems to genuinely care about what she is telling him. She gushes about how cute his blue eyes and crooked smile are, and about the text messages that were exchanged not too long prior to this conversation with him. The brunette woman finishes with explaining how, on top of all these amazing feelings this guy is making her feel, she also has this guilty pit in her stomach like she is doing something wrong and how she feels horrible calling her dead lover’s step-brother to talk about another guy.

With a small nod of his head confirming to himself that he fully understands now, Kurt then says, “Rachel…” His words dripping with sympathy and understanding. “I know Finn’s death was hard for you, it was hard for all of us, and I know you were the love of Finn’s life, but unfortunately he’s gone Rachel, and as hard as that is to accept, eventually you’ll have to allow yourself to move on. You have to continue living, and a big part of that is letting yourself be loved, and be in love. Finn would have wanted you to be happy. Does Wesley make you happy?” Kurt speaks softly to Rachel so she understands the truth behind his words, but he also has to fight back the shy tears that always seem to pop up when Finn’s name is said out loud.

 _“I think he could make me happy.”_ Rachel says quietly through the phone, “ _I mean it just kind of became obvious to me that he’s been flirting with me, but Kurt I really, really, like him and I just really needed to hear you say all of that. I needed to hear that this is okay.”_

Kurt can hear the emotion spilling out in the words she is saying, he was pretty sure she was in full blown tears now. “I know it’s hard Rachel, but I honestly think Finn would be thrilled to know that you’d be dating again, that you’d be willing to let yourself be happy again. Just because his life stopped doesn’t mean yours has to. He wouldn’t want that. It’s been over a year and at some point you have to start taking the steps to move on, so, if you’re calling to ask me if I think you should go for it, the answer is yes.” Kurt grips the phone tighter wishing he could be with his best friend right now on the other side of the country when she is going through an emotional battle with herself.

After a shaking teary laugh escapes from Rachel, she says, “ _Thank you,Kurt. You were right. You’re an amazing best friend_.”

Kurt laughs adding, “Oh, I know.” As he sways his shoulders showing off his diva-ness. Sensing the conversation topic lighting up a bit now Kurt decides to jump at the opportunity to get his best friend to laugh so he says, “So let’s go back to how cute this guys is, spill! I wanna know everything!” Kurt smiles when he hears the heavy laugh coming through the phone.

The two high school friends spend almost one hour talking about Rachel’s new guy until Kurt hears his name being called from a sleepy voice in the living room. “Rachel, I’m so glad you called me, and I would love to keep chatting, but Blaine just woke up and well…tonight is our first night alone here and…”

Rachel laughs. _“Say no more, I understand! You guys have fun!”_ She adds using her mocking voice.

Kurt blushes and tries to hide his blush with his free hand, adding, “Thanks Rachel…It was nice talking to you. Don’t be a stranger and call us again! We miss you!” The two exchange their goodbyes quickly before hanging up.

Kurt pulls back their bedroom curtain and walks back to the living room seeing a very cute Blaine still in the process of waking up. Blaine mumbles, “Why did you let me sleep? It’s late. I missed all the fun…”

Kurt laughs and grabbing his fiance’s hand adds. “Well, you were tired, so I let you rest for a while. I thought you might need your energy tonight because the real fun is about to start.”

Blaine blushes and asks. “Oh! So that means you have plans for us tonight?”

Kurt laughs and pulling his fiance toward the room, he adds, “Oh, yes I do!”

\------- 

After hanging up with Kurt, Rachel releases a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding. She knows Kurt is right and that she has every right to move on, most importantly that Finn would have wanted her too. The brunette climbs out of bed and makes her way to the window to the right of her bed and next to the vanity. She leans up against the window seal and looks up to the sky as if she were waiting for a sign from Finn letting her know that this was okay. She waits for a moment longer but nothing happens. Deciding she should go to the bathroom to brush her teeth and get ready for bed, she pushes of the side of the window seal and with one last look she whispers, “I will always love you.” As soon as the words leave her lips she sees a shooting star passing by. Standing up a bit straighter and smiling a watery smile she thinks to herself ‘ _That was it’_. That was Finn. She knew it, and he was silently telling her that everything would be okay.

Eventually, pulling herself away from the window and to her bathroom she starts by brushing her teeth. Then she washes the make-up off her face and runs a brush through her hair again before hitting the lights to the bathroom and stepping over the threshold back into her bedroom. Walking over to the left side of her bed she pulls back her lilac colored comforter and light yellow sheets. She was so ready for her head to hit her pillows for it has been a long day for her. Right as she sits down and swings her legs onto the bed, she starts to lead back, but is interrupted by the sound of knocking on her front door. She looks over to her alarm clock and thinks, ‘ _Who would be knocking this late in the evening?_ ’

Then she realizes that it was only a little after 10 pm and not everyone would be going to sleep, but she hasn’t really had enough free time since she’s been in L.A. to make many friends yet, other than the people on her show. With that thought she immediately thinks of the blue-eyed, brown-haired guy who’s been stealing a place in her mind a lot lately and she smiles at the thought that maybe he is making a late night visit. She quickly rolls off her bed and walks down the hallways through her living room and to the front door. After unlocking the top and bottom locks she swings the door open and who she sees is the last person she was expecting.

Standing in front of her is a tall and very excited blonde woman. “Brittany!?” Rachel questions with wide eyes. Reaching in for a hug from the dancer she continues clearly shocked, “Oh my god! What are you doing here?” Stepping back from their embrace she looks at Brittany again who just stands there bouncing up and down on the balls of her feet. “…Wait…did you get lost again?” She whispers to the blonde “…does Santana know you’re here?” The brunette asks worried.

“Of course I do, Hobbit.” Santana steps out from behind her girlfriend carrying two suitcases. “And we would have been here sooner, but we had to make a stop at the emergency vet clinic because L.T. here was throwing up everywhere because the medication they gave him on the plane to keep him calm was apparently upsetting his stomach or something.” She rolls her eyes, but a faint smile plays at her lips giving away that she is just kidding and actually cares for the large cat’s well being. ** **  
****

“Santana!” Rachel screams, ignoring her sassy comment as she runs to the Latina giving her a bone crushing hug. “Oh my goodness! I have miss you guys!” It was really nice seeing her friends again after being out in L.A. alone for some time now. Santana stands there with her hands frozen in the air like she didn’t know whether or not to hug the smaller girl back or not, but not even a second passes by before she softens and lowers her hands to wrap around Rachel’s back; showing she too missed her former Glee friend.

Stepping back once more and looking the two women over, realization hits Rachel and she asks the question she has been wanting to know since she opened her front door. “So, what are you guys doing here?”

Brittany and Santana just turn and look at each other, sharing a knowing smile with their eyes drifting back to Rachel. Their smirks still evident on their faces. Rachel looks between the two girls and down to their suitcases as worry starts to seep in.


	2. Love is in the air

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on the Glee Fan Project...Brittany and Santana moved to L.A. to start their new lives there...awesome right? Kurt and Blaine are finally living alone, but things are not that good because Kurt now wants to plan their wedding and Blaine seems to think they have plenty of time...Uh-oh! Mercedes went back to McKinley to visit Sam, who is now known as Mr. Evans, and she sang him a song and he turned her down...Yikes! Rachel has been working hard on her show and her co-star seems to be hitting on her, is she going to give him a chance? Santana and Brittany showed up at Rachel's door step late at night with suitcases on hand, are they moving in?...And that’s what you missed on Glee!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's our second episode! Remember that each episode is set in a month. Episode 2 = February. Click at the link at the top of the episode to listen to Episode's 2 playlist of songs. For this episode we're using two very special covers. The first one is a cover of Scotty McCreery's "(I love you) This big" by Adam Stanton and a mashup of Ed Sheeran's "Kiss me" and Beyonce's "XO" by Louisa Wendorff. Remember that we wrote the characters singing these songs with their own vocal arrangements in mind that’s why some of these songs are covers and some are the originals. We hope you enjoy them!

[Intro Video](http://gleefanproject.tumblr.com/post/107953853238/previously-on-the-glee-fan-project-brittany-and)

[Episode 2 playlist](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv_rvGfxbXKNBiEj0HClUzWcGOl7oMbz5)

In downtown L.A. the sun is peaking its way through a couple trees that shade one particular T.V. star’s back yard. The sun shines its beautiful rays through the light grey curtains that hang over the bay windows to the right of a disheveled empty queen size bed. Rachel has been sitting on the bench in front of her vanity mirror for the past hour going over her hair and makeup. Even though she knows she has professionals at the network to do it for her, she decides to curl her own hair instead of straightening it. She adds a light smokey eye effect to her makeup resulting in her warm brown eyes looking more defined than usual. Looking in the mirror one last time, approving of what she sees, Rachel grabs a bottle of red nail polish and lifts her right leg onto the bench. With her chin resting on her knee, she begins to paint her toenails. 

The brunette is soon interrupted by the sound of her bedroom door being opened. She messes up the last toe on her foot as she spins around in a slight panic wondering who could possibly be in her condo. When Rachel turns around she sees Santana casually striding through her bedroom doorway, Rachel sits there with wide eyes as the Latina slowly walks over to the dresser that sits next to her vanity and leans an elbow on it. With narrowed eyes she looks Rachel over and asks, “What are you doing?” With a slight shake of her head.

Taken aback by the question Rachel nervously laughs and stutters. “N-Nothing.” With a shake of her head and wide eyes, feeling like a teenager caught stuffing her bra.

Santana looks Rachel up and down taking in her abnormally short skirt that she’s wearing. It shows off her usually hidden toned legs. Her hair and makeup look different, almost fancier. Any other time they would appear very light and natural looking, but today that is not the case. A look of realization springs across Santana’s face and she puts on a knowing smirk. “If my Mexican third eye is right, and it’s never wrong, you’re totally trying to impress a guy, aren’t you?”

With a slight panic in her voice, Rachel tries to cover up the truth that Santana has just unwrapped. “What! No! What guy? There’s no guy, Santana.” She closes her eyes tightly, her shoulders tensing up as she tries to change the topic, “What are you even doing here, Santana? How did you even get in?”

Santana simply shrugs her shoulders, slipping the spare key she has in her hand into her back pocket, and with a roll of her eyes she says, “Seriously, it’s like you don’t even know me…I’ve had this key since two days after we got here. But, anyways those are technicalities. When were you going to tell me about him, Gay-Berry?” Rachel gets up off the bench she’s been sitting on and exits her bedroom. She walks down the hall and turns left into her kitchen trying to run away from that conversation, Santana follows close behind her.

As Rachel reaches into her kitchen cupboard and pulls out a glass cup; she says, “Have you ever thought that maybe the reason I don’t tell you things is because the way you speak to me isn’t exactly the nicest?” The brunette looks from the cup to Santana as she waits for a response.

“No.” Santana replies simply with a look that says she doesn’t see what she said wrong. With a throaty chuckle the tan skinned woman continues, “Oh, come on, Rachel! Everyone knows this is how I work. When I care about you, it means I put my nose in your business and sometimes break into your house, but it’s only because I’m looking out for you. Rachel, you’re one my best friends believe it or not, well besides Britt, obviously. I just don’t want you to get hurt, that’s all.” She says as she slightly shrugs her left shoulder.

The T.V. star walks from her kitchen counter to the refrigerator and grabs a pitcher of freshly brewed sweet tea and pours herself a glass. Setting the pitcher on the counter, she places both of her hands on the counter as well and looks sweetly to Santana knowing this is her trying to be sympathetic in the best way she knows how. “How did you even find out? Did Kurt tell you?” She questions with a smile playing at her lips. It’s very rare for her and Santana to have moments like this. Santana normally has walls built so high and strange ways of showing she cares.

Santana tilts her head and squints at Rachel. “Please! Lady-Hummel didn’t have to tell me anything. I could practically smell the pheromones you’ve been setting off for the past month from here.” Santana looks down at the counter she is currently leaned up against and then back to the other brunette, “Sorry…” She quietly apologizes.

After some minutes Rachel shyly admits, “I don’t know what to tell you about him…”

You can tell she’s really questioning herself about how much she can give away to her friend. “Don’t worry, Berry. You’re going to tell me everything and also you’re going to help me!” Rachel frowns confused, Santana continues, “You didn’t think I came here just to see how you were doing, did you?”

“Of course not.” Rachel remarks. “That would be too nice.”

“I actually just came here because I need your help deciding where to take Britt for Valentine’s Day and since you’ve been in this city for almost half a year longer than us, I thought that maybe you could help me with that. But that can obviously wait till after you spill the details about this man crush of yours though.” Santana replies.

She knows Santana well enough to know she won’t give up. Sighing, she resigns to her impending fate and without thinking too much, she opens her mouth. “Wesley…is my co-star–“

Santana gasps in surprise and smiles a sly grin, “Wait! Are you sleeping with your co-star?”

Blushing and shaking her head, Rachel immediately replies, “No! Of course not…we haven’t even been on a date! It’s just that…I think he’s interested in me”

The confused Latina frowns, “Interested? Like as friends or what?”

Rachel shakes her head, “No…like something else. He’s always flirting with me and walking me to set, sending me text messages, that type of stuff. I don’t know why he hasn’t tried to ask me out on a date. Maybe I’m being stupid and misreading his intentions…but, I really like him and–“

Santana, a bit tired of Rachel’s shenanigans, speaks up, “Shut up and listen carefully!” Rachel freezes in her seat.

“First, if you ever reveal what I’m about to say to anyone else, then make sure to be willing to go to a mental hospital, because I’m going to deny everything, and you’ll look like a crazy, pathetic, liar who needs imaginary friends to lift her spirit.” Rachel rolls her eyes and Santana continues, “Having cleared that up…What the hell is wrong with you? The Rachel, I hate and have known since high school wouldn’t have this kind of doubt…If you think he’s flirting with you, then he is. We, girls, are never wrong about that, we’re smarter than them. To be quite honest, that’s why I like girls. Well that and the way they look at you through their eyelashes with their piercing eyes, their smiles, the way they move their bodies so flawlessly…” She takes a deep breath and shakes her head to get rid of the mental images she was just playing with in her mind **.** “Anyways… if you feel like he’s flirting then he is. I don’t know why he hasn’t tried to ask you out…Maybe you haven’t given him enough clues that you want that to happen.” ** **  
****

The shy brunette’s cheeks turn crimson as a deep blush adorns them. “Honestly, I don’t think I’ve given him any.”

Santana blinks incredulously and asks, “Well there you go that’s your problem. Why not? You said you like him!”

Rachel steps away from the counter and slides into a seat next to Santana. She sighs and admits, “I do like him…I just don’t know how to tell you this.”

Rolling her eyes with impatience, Santana exclaims, “Just spill it Berry!”

Rachel takes a deep breath and opens her mouth, “He has asked me several times about my plans for the weekend and I’ve always told him an excuse like I’m rehearsing, or shopping, or I have plans with someone else, and so on…”

Santana chuckles, “You really need some help in the dating department. Now I feel bad for this guy. The poor man has been trying to take you out, but you’ve been closing the door before he even has a chance to peek through it!”

Rachel thinks about what her friend just said and asks, “Do you really think that?”

Santana shakes her head bearing a sweet smile from her venomous lips. “I’m sure of it.”

Rachel lets out a big sigh, “But, what can I do to fix that? I don’t even do it consciously. It’s just like a reflex.” She says, defeated.

Santana thinks a bit, “Maybe if you were born again–“

“Santana!” Rachel interrupts, frustrated at her friend’s antics.

Santana starts to laugh and adds, “I’m sorry I was kidding. I can’t resist the urge to make fun of you. Anyways, do you really wanna know what you can do?” Rachel nods. “Okay, first of all the next time he asks you about you plans the answer is going to be: _‘I don’t have plans, do you?’_ You need to start flirting or the poor guy is going to get tired of trying so hard…”

Rachel freaks out and exclaims, “I don’t know how to do that!”

The former cheerleader rolls her eyes, “Of course you do! You stole Finn from Quinn…twice! You managed to date the leader of our competition, Jesse St Something–“

“James” Rachel adds, a tad embarrassed.

Santana ignores her and continues, “–and you, by some miracle, got that hot gigolo to be your boyfriend for some strange reason, so I’m sure you know how to flirt.”

Slightly irritated that Santana had to bring up her dating past, some that she wasn’t all that proud of, Rachel says, “All of those times I wasn’t even aware I was doing it…”

Santana laughs a little, “Don’t worry Berry. I’ll help you with that, I happen to learn few things from that brief…dark period of time when I dated guys so…”

A light shines in Rachel’s wide eyes, “Are you serious? Are you really going to help me?”

Santana nods and adds, “Yes, but only if you help me too. Valentine’s day is coming up soon…” She trails off, looking anywhere but at Rachel’s face. “Britt and I are finally in this perfect place together and living out here. Everything is going so well and I don’t know…I wanna do something nice for her. Romance has never really been my strong suite through. One year for her birthday I got her a recording of you singing _‘My Headband’_ since it was her favorite song, but it wasn’t very romantic or anything and that took me forever to come up with.” Rachel scrunches her eyebrows in confusion wondering how Santana managed to pull that off without her knowing.

“So–” Santana continues as Rachel stares at the rambling brunette in front of her.

Having never seen this side of Santana, Rachel hurries and cuts her off, “So, you want me to help you come up with some ideas?”

Finally letting her eyes meet the other brown ones in the room, Santana slowly nods in confirmation, “Yeah… I don’t know L.A. that well.”

Rachel jumps up with a squeal and runs over to Santana. She grabs her by the arm causing the other girl’s eyes to widen, “I have so many ideas! You came to the right person!” Rachel drags Santana back over to the couch. Santana tries not to trip over her own feet as Rachel  pulls her faster than her brain can even register.

The two women plop down on the couch. Rachel starts rambling off ideas, but the impatient singer interrupts her. “Providence? The fancy restaurant on Melrose Avenue? No offense Rachel, but none of that really sounds like Brittany. Brittany likes the simpler things like feeding the ducks at the pond, laying under the stars and telling me stories about all the constellations. I mean last year for Christmas, we made a gingerbread house and she actually made up a whole story about the gingerbread people that lived inside of it. She finds so much joy in the little things that I normally tend to overlook. I want to show her that she reminds me to stop and look at the beauty of life. She always reminds me how great it is.”

Rachel stares at Santana seeing the heart eyes she has as she speaks about her girlfriend. With a smile she thinks she is finally seeing a glimpse of the real Santana, the one hidden behind all those tough layers. Santana gets lost in her thoughts, thinking of her girlfriend, when a smile quickly spreads across tan cheeks. She shifts her eyes back to Rachel and exclaims, “I got it! I know the perfect place to take her. You know this might be the first time I want to really hug you.” Rachel smiles and closes the small distance between them and hugs her friend.

Santana gets uncomfortable due to the sudden hug after about two seconds and adds, “Okay, okay, thanks for that. Enough with the hug. I said I wanted to do it, not that I was actually planning to…but thanks.” Rachel just smiles, knowing she didn’t do anything, but help Santana talk out her own thoughts. However, if it led to an amazing idea for Santana to surprise Brittany with, she was glad to be a part of it. Santana rolls her eyes and adds, “Now, you’ve earned yourself some flirting classes. Let’s start by teaching you how to not make people regret asking for your help” Rachel laughs and releases her friend.

“But you haven’t told me where you’re going to take Brittany for Valentine’s Day?” The curious brunette questions.

Santana, with a huge smirk on her face adds, “To the happiest place on earth!” Rachel smiles, and the two friends pass some time helping each other. Santana helps Rachel learn to flirt a little and Rachel helps Santana plan the perfect Valentine’s Day date.

Artie is making his way down the halls of the Brooklyn Film Academy, looking at all the heart cut outs that decorate the corridor and all the students that are holding hands and enjoying this particular festivity as they walk past him. _(Voice over) “I hate Valentine’s day, the cheesy hearts and kissing stuffed bears, they all suck! In fact, this whole week sucks! Every single day I have to endure the sappy stuff that’s just a reminder to all of us, single people, of how alone we really are!”_ The brunette boy turns the corner and continues down the long hallway, watching as guys are giving their girlfriends boxes of chocolates and over-sized stuffed animals. Artie rolls his eyes clearly uncomfortable by the situation and keeps going. _(Voice Over) “Well I don’t care…I’m fine by myself. I don’t need romance. You can all invade the school’s hallways with your paper hearts and cut out cupids that hang on the wall because I really don’t–”_

Artie’s thoughts stop when he feels something hitting him in the face. Flailing his arms around to push back the offending object he sees a bundle of red and pink heart shaped balloons. A very excited guy in his early twenties says, “Sorry about that! I didn’t see you! You want to buy one? I bet your girlfriend would love this one!” the guy adds showing Artie the biggest heart balloon he has ever seen.

Smacking the balloon away from him, Artie yells, “No!”

He grips his hands tighter around the wheels of his wheelchair so he can push harder and faster; Anything to get away from that guy as quick as possible. _(Voice Over) “Okay so maybe I care a little…” T_ he film student sighs resigned to his impending solitary week and starts to hum along the beat of a very well-known song that has been playing in his mind all day.

_(Artie)…I walk a lonely road the only one that I have ever known. Don’t know where it goes, but it’s home to me and I walk alone…_

With a new determination to get to his locker faster Artie pushes the heel of his palm on his chair’s wheels even harder. Seeing his locker up ahead, he quickly makes his way there and starts putting in his combination that he has memorized while trying to ignore all the people and their happy smiles that are around him. He just wants to get his stuff and get to the auditorium for the only thing he has to look forward to this week, his film’s auditions.

_(Artie)…I walk this empty street on the Boulevard of Broken Dreams. Where the city sleeps and I’m the only one and I walk alone…_

Artie grabs the book and notepad he needs to efficiently keep track of the actors and actress who are auditioning for his film. Looking over the contents of his locker to make sure he grabbed everything he will need, Artie pauses when he hears a high pitch squeal coming from the girl gleefully receiving presents at the locker next to his. The brunette boy turns his head to the right to see a tall auburn haired girl grabbing a heart shaped jewelry box from inside her locker, then turning and kissing the handsome rustic guy that is standing behind her.

_(Artie)…I walk alone, I walk alone. I walk alone….I walk a…_

With a deep sigh and a quick roll of his eyes Artie continues his mission of getting to the auditorium. Nothing would make him happier than to get away from all the sickening loving feeling that are being passed around the halls. He makes a quick left at the end of the hallway and sees the auditorium doors straight ahead. Seeing his escape in front of him, he quickly makes his way into the room.

_(Artie)…My shadow’s the only one that walks beside me. My shallow heart’s the only thing that’s beating. Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me ’til then I walk alone…_

Once Artie is inside the auditorium he lets out a breath he didn’t realize he was holding. In fact, he hadn’t realized until this week how lonely he had been feeling. But that didn’t matter, now he could finally relax and focus on something that meant a lot to him. Making his way to the director’s table in the middle of the auditorium he spots a paper laying in the middle of the table. With his mind now focus on the task at hand he grabs the paper and looks over the audition sign-up list. There are some names on the list that he recognize from other student projects in the past and some he didn’t recognize at all. He continues to look down the long list of people wanting to work with him when he stops on a name that has a heart sticker next to it. The feeling of annoyance washes back over him as he quickly tries to pick it off only to end up frustrated when the paper rips instead. Throwing the paper off to the side he continues to sing.

_(Artie)…Ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, aaah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah…I’m walking down the line that divides me somewhere in my mind. On the border line of the edge and where I walk alone…_

Artie makes his way to sit behind the table facing the stage. Still feeling slightly depressed, thinking this day, hell even this week probably couldn’t get much worse, he sighs because he didn’t foresee it getting better either. He looks forward and slips into director mode knowing that this film project is worth forty percent of his grade, so he knows he has to be focused. Straightening his back he gives a head nod to his assistant, Bruce, silently telling him he was ready for the first audition.

_(Artie)…Read between the lines what’s fucked up and everything’s alright. Check my vital signs to know I’m still alive and I walk alone…_

A tall, handsome but overly dramatic guy, walks out on to the stage from behind the curtains. He runs and spins across the stage while reading his given script. Artie looks at him, clearly not impressed by his acting, and looks to Bruce and with furred eyebrows he shakes his head.

_(Artie)…I walk alone, I walk alone. I walk alone, I walk a…_

Bruce quickly escorts the man off stage telling him that they would _‘get back to him’._ The tall man drops his chin to his chest knowing that probably that was their nicest way of saying _‘you’re not what we are looking for’_.

_(Artie)…My shadow’s the only one that walks beside me. My shallow heart’s the only thing that’s beating. Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me ’til then I walk alone…_

After receiving another small nod from the director, Bruce lets the next person proceed to the stage for their audition. It’s a short brunette girl who is auditioning for the lead role _‘Kelly’_. Artie can’t deny that she is a great actress, but the role of _‘Kelly’_ had to be more than just that. Her character consist of singing, dancing, and acting, and this girl just isn’t the triple threat he was looking for.

_(Artie)…Ah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah, aaah-ah, ah-ah, ah-ah…I walk alone, I walk a…_

Artie goes through numerous other auditions that leave him thinking he will never find his _‘Kelly’_ and the rest of the cast of _‘In Past Lives’._

_(Artie)…I walk this empty street on the Boulevard of Broken Dreams. Where the city sleeps and I’m the only one and I walk a…My shadow’s the only one that walks beside me. My shallow heart’s the only thing that’s beating. Sometimes I wish someone out there will find me ’til then I walk alone…_

Artie rubs at his temples getting frustrated at the lack of talent he had been presented with so far. He looks at the audition list and sees he is getting close to the bottom, having only four auditions left. Shifting his eyes to see who his next audition is, he notices that it is the contender who put the heart sticker next to their name, but since he ripped the paper trying to get the sticker off in a fit of rage, he can’t see the name of the auditionee. Sighing he just nods to his assistant to bring out the next contestant. Looking back at his paper he mentally kicks himself for letting his Valentine’s haterade to get the best of him. Hearing the sound of heels click on the stage’s wooden floor, Artie looks up to see the new person, who would try, but probably fail like all the rest, to convince him to cast them. When he looks up he sees a girl stride confidently across the stage to the middle, turning and facing him. She stands there with her hazy blue eyes, perfectly framed with long lashes, squinting to see past the stage lights. Her natural blonde hair flows in waves past her bare shoulders to adorn her glowing porcelain-like skin. She wears a simple off white dress accompanied with a braided belt that hugs her supple waist and cuts off just above her knees showing off her long toned legs. She looks up past the lights and to the director sitting behind the table, slowly she lets her tongue trail her bottom lip before a smile spreads across her face, making her cheeks rise reaching her sparkling eyes. If Artie wasn’t wearing his wheelchair’s seat belt he is sure he would of found a way to fall out of his chair right then, stunned by this woman’s beauty. “Hi, I’m Madison. I’m auditioning for Kelly.” Her melodic voice drifts through the room sounding almost angel like as Artie whispers the last line of the song.

_(Artie)…I walk a lonely road the only one that I have ever known…_

Artie shakes his head trying to remove the fog over his brain, she somehow magically put there from yards away from him. Clearing his throat he announces, “Okay, Madison. Let’s see what you got.” He sits and watches Madison sing and dance her way through the stage with so much emotion it’s like she lived Kelly’s life every day of her own. Tapping into the emotional story and bringing it to life in mere minutes. Artie is immediately mesmerized by her, he knows he just found his lead. Still overwhelmed by the impact this woman caused in him, he tries to make some notes about her acting. When Madison finishes her audition Artie struggles to find his voice again, but finally manages to shout to the stage, “That was-That was lovely…Madison!” The blonde gives him a sweet smile and Artie continues, “I think we found our Kelly!”

In shock, Madison brings her hands up to cup over her gasping mouth, the script still clenched in her right hand. She starts jumping up and down in excitement as “oh my God’s”, “Yes’s!” and “I can’t believe it’s” escape between her tender lips. Artie watches with a smile, as the blonde beauty celebrates on stage.

The back door to Carmel High School is slowly opened with the suns rays shining into the darkness that covers the back of the auditorium. Mercedes quietly steps inside as the sound from a show choir performing on the stage down below wafts through the air and meets her ears.

_(Vocal Adrenaline)…We belong together and you know that I’m right…_

Making her way down the steps and between the aisle of chairs, the diva spots her former Glee club teacher while his now students continue performing.

_(Vocal Adrenaline)…Why do you play with my heart? Why do you play with my mind?…_

Leaning on a chair that sits next to Mr. Schuester, the dark skinned girl bumps shoulders with the new Vocal Adrenaline coach earning a quick glance from the curly haired man.  

_(Vocal Adrenaline)…Said we’d be forever, said it’d never die. How could you love me and leave me and never say goodbye?…_

Will does a double take and looks back to his former glee student exclaiming excitedly “Oh my god! Mercedes! How are you? When did you get back? I thought you were on tour.” He stands up from his leaning position on the auditorium chairs and opens his arms to engulf the diva in a welcoming hug.

_(Vocal Adrenaline)…When I can’t sleep at night without holding you tight. Girl, each time I try I just break down and cry. Pain in my head oh I’d rather be dead spinnin’ around and around…_

With a big cheeky smile Mercedes returns the greeting, “Hey Mr. Schue! I’m good and I got back a couple months ago.”

_(Vocal Adrenaline)…Although we’ve come to the end of the road still I can’t let you go. It’s unnatural, you belong to me, I belong to you. Come to the end of the road still I can’t let you go. It’s unnatural, you belong to me, I belong to you…_

The former WMHS Glee coach casts his vision back to the group of kids performing on the stage in front of them. “They’re really good.” Mercedes chirps up.

Will looks back to Mercedes and gives her a tight lipped smile. “Yeah, they are talented, some of them just lack the passion…”

_(Vocal Adrenaline-James)…Girl, I know you really love me, you just don’t realize. You’ve never been there before it’s only your first time…_

Mercedes watches as a short dark skinned boy with baggy clothes, standing out from the rest of the picture perfect kids in the choir, steps out and sings. The diva’s eyes widen at the boy’s voice. He is amazing and puts all his soul into the lyrics he is singing. “Wow, if the rest of them sang like that Mr. Schue I’d say even McKinley needs to look out.”

_(Vocal Adrenaline-James)…Maybe I’ll forgive you, hmmm. Maybe you’ll try. We should be happy together. Forever, you and I…_

A chuckle escapes the short curly haired man, “I know, that’s James, it’s hard to believe he’s only a freshman. He really is great, but it’s just because he’s like you guys were, he has the passion in him. I just wish the rest of them would tap into their passion, I know it’s there!”

_(Vocal Adrenaline-James)…Will you love me again like you loved me before. This time I want you to love me much more. This time instead just come to my bed and, baby, just don’t let me down…_

Mercedes has a hard time peeling her eyes away from the freshman boy still stunned by the voice that such a small guy could have. Finally, tearing her eyes away from this James kid and to her former Glee teacher, she says, “Well no offense, because I do love me some Boys II Men, but maybe it’s the music. I mean this is an older song and I’d bet that half of these kids don’t even know who Boys II Men are. You gotta let them find their…what was it ‘duende’?” Mercedes laughs at the memory. “Just like when we begged to do Britney’s week, I think you gotta let them find their passion.” She trails off while watching the rest of the choir join in and sing the chorus ** **  
****

_(Vocal Adrenaline)…Although we’ve come to the end of the road still I can’t let go. It’s unnatural, you belong to me, I belong to you. Come to the end of the road still I can’t let go. It’s unnatural, you belong to me, I belong to you…_

Recalling the memory of when his old Glee club did Britney Spears, he quickly shakes his head. “No, I don’t think that’s such a good idea, I’m all for them finding their passion, but if you recall Britney’s week did end with fire trucks showing up and kids trampling over each other. I think I’ll stick to picking the songs, they just need to listen to the lyrics and find themselves in the music, I think. These songs are soulful and classics. You guys would of loved performing this song!”

Mercedes nods and adds, “Well, yeah, because we grew up listening to bands like Boyz II Men and 98 Degrees so we can relate. These kids aren’t us Mr. Schue, they have different childhood memories, different styles…”

Will shakes his head, “I think I know what I’m doing, but thanks Mercedes…” There’s an awkward silence between the two before he speaks again. “So what brought you here anyways.”

_(Vocal Adrenaline-Steve)…Girl, I’m here for you all those times at night when you just hurt me and just run out with that other fella. Ba–…_

The up tight, yet passionate teacher turns around focusing his attention towards his student and without letting him go any further into the song he yells, “Stop! Stop! Stop! What are you doing Steve!? This part lacks passion! Although it’s just the spoken-verse it still needs to have the feelings required to transmit the message of the song! You’re lacking all the passion needed!” ** **  
****

The Vocal Adrenaline student, a bit tired of his teacher’s same lectures about lack of passion, speaks up, “Mr. Schue, with all due respect, this song is not good enough. It’s boring and I can’t feel the passion you keep insisting this song has”

Mr. Schue sighs defeated, and without wanting to start an argument with his students, he adds, “Okay, everybody take five. We already discussed your issues about this song, so we won’t do that again. Go and rest for a while. Think about what you want; if you want to win Regionals then you’ll come back, and this time you’re going to kill this song understood? If not, then the door is open! I won Nationals with just 12 students and there are 25 of you, so if any of you don’t want to be part of this team then let us know and we can give someone else your solos.” The group of students walk away without adding another word.

Mercedes looks at her former teacher and asks, “Are you alright Mr. Schue?”

The curly haired teacher nods as Mercedes continues, “Well, I’ve never seen you treating students like that. In fact you never, ever treated us like that. I thought you were happy coaching Vocal Adrenaline. I’m not going to deny that when I first heard about you leaving McKinley I was surprised because you had said you’d never accept coaching the competition. I thought that maybe you had changed your mind because, after all, Glee Club is your passion; and since there was no Glee Club at McKinley I thought this decision was the right thing for you, but you look tired…What’s going on?”

Mr. Schuester let’s out a big and resoundful sigh, as he adds, “It’s nothing…I don’t need to be bothering you with my issues, really I’m fine.”

Mercedes quickly shakes her head, “Mr. Schue, how many times did you listen to us cry about something trivial going on in our lives? It’s time I returned the favor. Come on sit down and we can just talk.”

They both look over their shoulder and pull down the bottom cushioned seat and take a seat, Mercedes turning and looking to her former teacher with a smile that says she is all ears. With a deep sigh and a shake of his head Will decides he has nothing to lose so he starts ranting off his problem to his former student. “I just feel I am under a lot of pressure. The kids here are used to winning and–”

Mercedes quickly cuts him off “Mr. Schue if you’re about to say that we weren’t winners I’m going to cut you off there, what happened to the whole it’s not about winning lecture?”

The curly hair man laughs, “I was just about to say that, that’s the thing with them. They want to win so bad because they are used to Dustin Goolsby, Dakota Stanley and Shelby Corcoran who drilled these rehearsals into them, making sure their moves and vocals were so perfect that they didn’t teach them the power of music. I want to teach them that there is more to it than just winning. I originally wasn’t going to come here because of that reason, but then I thought maybe that’s exactly why I should be here. So these kids have someone teaching them the important parts of competition and music and not another top dollar coach teaching them that without winning they are nothing. They are just kids…they need to learn what truly matters”

Mercedes smiles warmly and gives her former teacher a pat on the back, “I’m sure you will help them like you did with us, but you can’t expect them to change their ideals in just a couple of months. Do you remember how long it took for Rachel to really truly understand that winning was not everything?”

They both chuckle at the truth. “Okay, enough about me and my boring issues. Tell me what’s going on with you? How was the tour? I am still shocked, and so proud of you. Who knew the girl that wrote _‘Hell to the No’_ and sang about getting diabetes would be our next rising star?”

Mercedes smiles and adds, “It was great! I had the chance to get to know a lot of new cities and new people, but most importantly I experienced what being an artist really is and I loved it! The adrenaline when you’re about to come out on stage, even a small one, is unbelievable! Not to mention the feeling when people sing your songs out loud! That’s from another planet! I swear the whole experience was out of this world. I still can’t believe it really happened.”

Mr. Schue smiles and boasts, “That sounds great! I’m so glad you got to experience all that! I knew you were going to make it, and I can’t say enough how proud of you I am, but that’s not what you came here to talk to me about, is it?” Mercedes looks down and slowly shakes her head fighting back the emotions that pop up just by thinking about the reason behind all her problems, Sam.

Mr. Schue grabs Mercedes’ hand and in a reassuring gesture adds, “You know you can talk to me about anything Mercedes, teacher or not, I still care about you.”

Mercedes looks up no longer trying to hide her watery eyes. She breathes out a teary laugh and adds, “Are you sure you got the time?”

The curly-haired teacher gives her a confident nod. “Absolutely! I will always have time for you!”

Mercedes smiles, and feeling relieved she starts to share what’s really hurting her. “Last year I ended my relationship with Sam and at that time I thought that it was the best for both of us, because our paths were no longer connected. He wanted to come back home and I had my tour, so I thought that going separate ways was the right decision. The problem is that when I was on tour I really got the chance to experience what being lonely really meant.” Mr. Schue hands her a tissue so she can wipe the tears that are running down her face while she continues, “During all my concerts when I received a standing ovation after belting out the last note of one of my songs, I tended to look at the first row. My agent usually reserved some seats for some friends, family or important people, and I couldn’t help, but think _‘that’s where Sam should be.’_ However, he was never there and that feeling of emptiness, of loneliness made me, still makes me feel sick. That’s when I realized how important he was, is, for me. But what really made me think about all my decisions was watching Brittany and Santana run off to get ready for bed together every night. That was depressing, because every time I entered my hotel room I sat on the edge of the bed staring at the empty spot beside me, and the hole in my chest just grew…I guess I never realized how much I would miss him, how much I needed him. So I came back here to try to get him back, but it’s like if he was purposely keeping me at arms reach and that hurts…deeply.”

Mr. Schue, trying to help his alumni offers Mercedes some comforting words, “You know? When Sam first came back he seemed to have lost his spark, he felt trapped, lost, empty…But then he started teaching the Glee Club. I think he’s slowly getting it back now, so maybe he just needs time to figure out what he really wants. He has gone through a lot of changes lately. What he did for the Glee Club at McKinley was extraordinary, did you know he faced Sue?” Mercedes nods because she already heard that story, Mr. Schue continues, “Well, that was admirable. He fought to get the club back, and he got it, maybe that’s what you need to do. Fight for him, but giving him some space. Try to understand that maybe your presence here, it’s bothering him, and not because he doesn’t love you or anything, but because he finally found something he’s good at. Something that really makes him happy, and maybe it’s hard for him to handle all that and have you again in his life…You know Sam better than anyone, so use that in your favor, and just give him some time and let him find himself first…Do it for him…If you two are really meant to be together, then everything is going to settle for the best. Of that I’m sure.”

Mercedes wipes the remaining tears on her face and says, “I know you’re right and I know I need to give him time and space, and I will, but I’m not giving up on him. I can’t. I think he’s the one…”

Mr. Schue smiles, “Then you have nothing to worry about…If you’re sure he’s is the one, then just wait for him to figure that out too.” Mercedes nods and gives her teacher a sweet smile as the kids from Vocal Adrenaline return to the stage to start rehearsing again.

Kurt opens the door of the small loft and making his way inside he yells, “I’m home!” waiting to hear the usual reply from his fiance, but nothing happens. He frowns, confused and walks over to their room to look for Blaine. The moment he slides the curtains that work as doors, he finds the hazel-eyed boy closing one of the drawers in an attempt to try to hide something. Kurt can’t tell what it is, but his fiance looks suspicious. Blaine a bit startled by the presence of his better half, tries to fake a smile, “Hi Babe! You’re home! I thought you’d be home a little later. I didn’t hear the door.”

Kurt frowns again. “I finished earlier. I called, but your phone was busy…What were you doing?”

Blaine quickly raises his hands and says, “Nothing!” Feigning innocence. Kurt looks at his fiance and frowns again. Blaine, knowing Kurt is not buying anything of what he’s saying, quickly adds, “Really I was just reorganizing some of our drawers. I was distracted doing that and I didn’t hear you, you just scared me when you opened the curtains that’s all…”

Kurt walks over and opens the drawer still not entirely convinced by Blaine’s answer. Blaine suppresses a smile. He knew Kurt wouldn’t believe him so he, in fact, reorganized some of the drawers.

Kurt looks at the drawer and finds that Blaine didn’t lie, it’s actually reorganized. What used to be the bowties drawer is now a very organized set of boxes containing not only bowties, but socks and gloves too. Kurt smiles, “Well this drawer looks good”

Blaine returns the smile. “I thought that maybe if we keep our stuff organized like in these small boxes we could win some space in the closet to buy more stuff…” Kurt keeps looking at the drawer with a hint of uncertainty in his eyes. He’s sure Blaine is hiding something. Blaine, noticing his fiance’s confused frown reassures him. “Seriously that’s all and if you’re done with the police interrogation can you give me my hello-kiss now?” Kurt laughs a little and walks over to kiss his fiance.

Once the blue-eyed boy breaks the kiss, he questions, “Are you sure this sudden need to reorganize the drawers and you acting all nervous has nothing to do with Valentine’s Day?"

Blaine, caressing his love’s face, shakes his head and adds, “No, I already told you. I’m not planning anything. Why you don’t believe me?”

The knowing guy chuckles. “Well maybe because I know you, and I can’t believe you’re not planning something for one of your favorite holidays?”

Blaine rolls his eyes. “Well, yeah it is one of my favorite holidays, but believe me or not I’m not planning anything.” He says, not really lying because he’s actually not planning anything, he already has the whole thing planned.

“Okay, I’ll pretend I believe you.” Kurt smiles, trying to trust in his fiance.

Blaine laughs and can’t help but ask back. “And you? Are you planning something for us?”

Kurt lets go of Blaine’s hand and walking to the door he adds, “Me? Not really, I mean I want us to maybe go out for dinner or something like that to make it special, but not something over the top. We don’t need a silly festivity to really celebrate love, right?”

Blaine nods nervously and Kurt notices his fiance’s reaction. Now the blue-eyed guy knows for sure his fiance lied and he’s planning something for him, if not _why would he be trying so hard to hide his scared look from him?_ Kurt smiles and asks, “You want some Chinese for dinner?” Blaine smiles at his fiance’s dedication to make him the happiest man in the world and Kurt continues, “I can go and buy some…”

Blaine nods adding, “I can go with you if you want.”

Kurt immediately shakes his head. “No! I mean you can go if you want, but I think it’s better if you stay here reorganizing the drawers. You’re doing great!”

Blaine shrugs and coyly comments, “Okay”

Kurt practically runs and grabbing his keys from the small table by the door he yells, “I’ll be back soon! 20 mins tops!”

As soon as Kurt is outside the loft and making his way to the nearest Chinese food restaurant he pulls out his phone from the small bag of his skintight jeans. The stylish boy looks for a number at his long list of contacts until the screens reads, “Elliott Gilbert”. He presses the green phone-icon button and waits until his band-mate answers the phone.

_“What’s up Kurt?”_ Elliott greets.

“Hi, Elliott! Do you remember what I told you yesterday?” Kurt asks excitedly while he walks down the blocks to reach the Chinese restaurant.

_“Ummm…about the Valentine’s top secret plan?”_ His friend asks confused.

Kurt nods, although he knows his friend can’t really see him. “Yeah, well guess what?”

The other side of the line goes silent for a couple of seconds before adding, _“You finally discovered him? Poor Blaine! You always learn about all his plans befo–”_

Interrupting, Kurt excitedly says, “No, I didn’t discover anything yet. Well I did, but not the whole plan. It’s just that now I’m sure he’s hiding something. I found him acting very suspicious and I followed your advice when he asked me if I was planning something and I said that I wasn’t and that we didn’t need something special…all that stuff you told me yesterday.”

Laughing through the phone, Elliott asks curiously, _“And what happened?”_

Kurt smiles and in a chipper voice says, “He panicked, he didn’t say it, but I saw it in his eyes. His face was priceless because he was nodding, but the fear in his eyes was evident.”

Elliott chuckles and playfully retorts to his good friend, _“You’re evil.”_

“Not really, I’m just curious and he has learned to hide things from me so, I need to use more extreme resources”

_“And so…what are you going to do?”_ Elliott asks with pure curiosity.

Kurt’s smile falls as he exclaims defeated. “I don’t know! You’ll have to help me plan something special. You know he’s always preparing awesome stuff, and I want to make this Valentine’s Day very special…”

The current member of the One Three Hill band adds, _“Don’t worry, we still have some days to plan something, so I’ll help you with that…We can talk about it at the band’s rehearsal tomorrow.”_

Kurt smiles, “Great idea! Both Dani and you can help me with that. I’ll try to do some research and see if I can find out something else about his plans.”

Elliott sighs, _“You’re impossible Kurt! If he’s planning something and he hasn’t told you yet it’s because it’s a surprise and surprises are about not knowing what’s going to happen…that’s the whole point”_

Kurt shakes his head and stops before entering the restaurant. “You know I hate surprises. Anyways, I’ll see you tomorrow. I’ll text you if I have some luck with my research.”

Elliott laughs, _“Okay, see ya!”_ Kurt smiles and hangs up.

After buying some orange chicken with steamed rice and lo mein with egg rolls, Blaine’s favorites, he makes his way back to their house. When he opens the door instead of announcing his arrival, a now excited Kurt, using his very special ninja powers, walks in trying to make as little noise as possible. He walks on tiptoe to the kitchen and leaves the bags with the food there. Kurt can clearly hear that Blaine is on the phone and he’s saying, “Thank you Lindy! You are incredible! And don’t worry I just need some help with getting the whole thing set up. I already have the rest under control.”

Kurt frowns questioning himself if Lindy is the same Lindy Harris from NYADA he knows, because if she is, then _why is she_ _helping Blaine?_ Kurt still confused walks to the door and yells, “Dinner is here!”

Blaine emerges from the room and smiles warmly at his fiance, walking over to help him with the bags on the table. Kurt grabs his carton and hands Blaine his, sharing one or two playful looks between them. They know each other so well to know they both are hiding something. “Thanks for this…Lo mein with egg rolls and orange chicken with steamed rice, you remembered my favorites!” Kurt just smiles and Blaine continues “What I don’t get is why you had to go all the way down there if this restaurant delivers…”

Kurt lowers his gaze to hide his blush and causally adds, “I just needed some air…” Blaine laughs and takes a seat at their dinner table with his carton of food in his hands. With a confused look Kurt sits on the couch looking to his fiance. “What are you doing over there, don’t you wanna watch reruns of Project Runway?”

The hazel-eyed boy looks over his shoulder with a smile and says, “It’s Wednesday” as an explanation.

Realization spreads across Kurt’s face as he jumps up from the couch and makes his way to the dinner table. “Oh my gosh! You’re so right! I forgot it was already Wednesday!” He sets his food in the spot across from Blaine, sitting down and looking passionately to his lover, he questions thoughtfully “So other than rearranging all our drawers for some random reason, how was your day? We’re barely sharing classes now so fill me in with all the details.”

Blaine smiles to his fiance, “It was great…” Pausing for a moment before continuing, “You know? I’m really glad we do this once a week. Since I changed some of my classes at school, with you working at the diner, still interning at Vogue, and having all your band’s rehearsals I thought that maybe we would have some difficulties on trying to keep each other in the loop with our lives, but this is good.”

Kurt smiles warmly while agreeing, “Yeah, this is great, but don’t try to change the subject! Tell me about school! I heard someone saying that you killed Mrs. Judkins singing class!”

Blaine blushes, “Yeah, I think I did great Mrs. Judkins was really impressed. I told her it was just because I had practiced that song before with June, but she said that has nothing to do with that”

Kurt smiles nodding in accordance, “Of course that has nothing to do with that! June has helped you get some gigs and stuff, but she didn’t give you the talent. You were born with it”

Blaine laughs and ducks his head hiding his red cheeks. “Thanks, now tell me about you, how was your day?”

Kurt claps excited while gushing, “It was wonderful! And you won’t believe me when I tell you what happened today at the office!” Blaine stares at his fiance while he shares all the recent events. They stay just catching up with their busy lives, smiling and laughing until past midnight. Finally deciding to call it a night, the two boys change into their pajamas and brush their teeth before pulling back the cover and slipping into the king sized bed and snuggling up close to the other. Blaine wraps his arm around Kurt’s waist pulling him closer into his embrace and drifting off into dream land with soft smiles on their faces.

The L.A. morning sunlight streams into the open window bathing light on the two women who lay still asleep, arms draped over one another and legs tangled together. It’s the sound of the wind blowing through the windows shifting the short dark blue curtains that adorn their bedroom window that wakes Santana up. She squints her eyes from the bright light that betrayed them. Santana has never been a morning person, but when she turns her head to the right and sees blonde hair spread out across her chest she can’t help but smile. Brittany is like her cup of coffee before her actual cup. Waking up next to her is a dream she never thought would come true; but here they are two months into living alone together in Los Angeles wrapped up in each others arms. Sure, she got to fall asleep and wake up next to the blonde beauty while in New York, but now that they live alone, it’s a whole new feeling. All the stuff they would secretly dream and talk about with each other in high school was actually a reality now. Sometimes she had to close her eyes and reopen them just to double check she is actually awake and that this isn’t a dream.

The Latina is brought out of her blissful thoughts when the blonde that lies half on top of her shifts, signalling she is starting to wake. Looking down she is met with blue eyes that are slowly fluttering open and looking up to her. The brunette leans down and presses a kiss to the blonde’s temple, “Good morning.” She winces at hearing her own raspy morning voice.

Blue eyes flutter a couple more times before Brittany lifts her head from the Latina’s chest, sparkling blue’s meet the warm brown one’s of the woman below her and with a smile she chimes, “Good morning!” Santana lets out a small laugh at the sound of Brittany’s already chipper voice. It amazes her how the moment Brittany fully wakes up she is already a ball of happiness and energy.

Leaning back down and hiding her face in the crook of Santana’s neck, Brittany murmurs, “I don’t wanna get up, you’re really comfy.” Shaking her head in amusement Santana looks over to where her phone lays on her nightstand and presses the center button waking the screen up to check the time.

Sighing, the brunette runs her hand down the small of her girlfriend’s back, “Well it’s only 8a.m., I have a couple hours still until my audition and I would like to run through my lines again, would you mind helping me?”

Humming in contentment at the soothing pattern Santana is drawing on her back, the blonde nods, “Of course San, although you don’t need it. I just know you’re going to nail this audition.” With her eyes still closed she continues, “My Mexican third eye says so.”

Hearing the words leave her girlfriend’s lips, Santana starts to chuckle causing the blonde’s head, that still lies on her chest, to bob up and down. “Brittany, you’re not Hispanic you don’t have a Mexican third eye.”

The dancer lifts her head off her girlfriend’s chest, once again meeting her lover’s eyes, and with an innocent smile she says, “But my girlfriend is.” She gives the brunette a quick smirk, accompanied with a wink. “So, by default don’t I get one too?” She questions the Latina.

‘ _She is just too perfect.’_ Santana thinks to herself as she smiles so hard her cheeks start to burn. That seems to be a common thing now, smiling so hard whenever she is around the blonde. It is a welcomed change from the scowls she was used to giving on a day-by-day basis, and she definitely wouldn’t change it for the world. “Sure Britt.” She says softly. Brittany bounces in her place on the bed and smiles an excited smile, then quickly leans down and gives her girlfriend’s lips a peck.

With a pat to the Latina’s pajama clad thigh, Brittany rolls off the queen sized bed and as she strides through the archway of their bedroom door she calls back to Santana, “Come on babe, get up!”

Santana stares at the doorway till her girlfriend’s figure disappears, having traveled further into their apartment. She sits there a moment longer with a love struck smile gracing her lips. She bites her bottom lip. Looking over her right shoulder she catches her reflection in the mirror that sits on top of their dresser. She quickly rolls her eyes at herself and stands up stretching her arms to the ceiling causing the hem of her night shirt to rise up her torso. Letting her arms fall back to her sides she heads to the doorway and follows the direction Brittany took, exiting the bedroom.

The Latina finally catches up to the blonde, who is standing in the kitchen grabbing various things from the cabinets. With her eyebrows scrunched in confusion, Santana asks, “Umm, Britt? What are you doing?”

Brittany looks over her shoulder to the kitchen’s breakfast bar where her girlfriend is perched on one of the three rustic Marguerite bar stools that lines the bar. “I’m baking you a cake for Valentine’s day. I found this really good recipe where you can put gummy bears inside the cake!” The blonde states excitedly.

“But Valentine’s isn’t for two more days.” Santana states still confused as to why her girlfriend is tearing up their kitchen.

With a slight pout Brittany answers, “Yeah I know, I figured I’d give myself enough time for mistakes. Recipes are just really confusing.”

The shorter girl smiles sweetly at her girlfriend with heart eyes. “You’re amazing at anything you set your mind to babe.” She says sending the blonde a confident smile.

“Do you still want me to go over lines with you? Because I can, or do you want to do it by yourself?” Brittany asks her girlfriend as she looks at her over the printed recipe she is holding in her hands. Santana’s eyes darken slightly as she looks at the blonde through long lashes, “Wanky.” She quietly says beneath her breath with a smirk, but not unnoticed to the now grinning girl standing across from her.

“Yeah, if you want to. I think it helps hearing it out loud.” Santana shrugs her shoulders.

Brittany walks to the refrigerator and grabs a carton of eggs and the half gallon jug of skim milk. She looks intensely at the recipe in front of her and starts trying to crack one of the eggs; resulting in it shattering and the shells all falling into the bowl. Her bottom lip pokes out slightly in a pout and before she knows it there’s a tan hand sliding down her forearm and taking a new egg from her hand.

Standing behind the blonde she places a kiss to Brittany’s neck and whispers, “Here watch me.” Brittany watches as Santana cracks the egg and opens the shell letting the contents fall into the bowl, leaving the shell still in her hand.

The blonde just can’t understand how the Latina could make cracking an egg open look so sexy, she stutters back, “T-T-Thanks.” Santana now wearing a smirk, loving the affect she knows she has over Brittany when they’re in close proximities, takes a step back, running her hands across her girlfriend’s back as she lets them drop back to her sides. “I’ll go grab the script.” The taller girl just silently nods and tries to focus back on the recipe in front of her.

By the time Santana makes a quick retreat to their bedroom, grabbing her script from her red Michael Kors bag, and makes her way back to where she left her girlfriend in the kitchen, her eyes widened in shock. “Oh my god, Brittany what happened in here? I was gone for like 5 seconds.” The tall blonde looks over to the brunette and smiles, with flour all over her hands, shirt, and smeared all over her face. She quickly looks over to the counter where her attempt at making cake batter sits seeing the flour and sugar spilled everywhere.

“Oh this? Don’t worry it’s just part of the process.” She gives Santana a grin and rocks on the heels of her feet in excitement, “You got the script?”

Santana nods and hands her girlfriend a copy of the script, “We can start on page three.” She flips the pages till she lands on the correct one. “Okay, so I’ll start reading Carmen’s lines and you can read Sarah’s.” Brittany nods and sets the script next to the cake recipe. She looks over both papers, trying to follow along with Santana, while continuing to add and mix the ingredients for the cake batter.

Santana clears her throat and using a thick Spanish accent asks, “Did you see how Brian pulled up to his parking space going top speed?”

Brittany frowns and following the lines she chirps, “I sure did! And did you notice that his tires squealed and he was blaring 2 Chainz out of his windows at the same time?”

Santana, after making a note at the script, continues reading, “Oh yes. And when he got out of his car with his Ray Bans…”

Brittany gets confused and says, “…And his sleeves rolled up and his…” Brittany looks to her mixing bowl to add the teaspoon of baking soda and keeps reading, “preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.”  

Santana scrunches her eyebrows in confusion, looking back to her script she holds in her hands checking Sarah’s last lines. Realizing Brittany must have misread the script because they were suppose to be describing how the guy in the script looks. Santana glances up to admire her girlfriend, who seemed to have even more food all over her than in the mixing bowl. Brittany bites her bottom lip in confusion still looking over the papers, “Oh, wait.” The blonde looks up to Santana realizing she was reading off the recipe and not the script she bashfully pipes up with a, “Sorry.”

Santana puts down her script, walks the short distance to the other woman, and with a smile the Latina comforts her girlfriend, “It’s okay Britt.” She runs her thumb along the blonde’s lower lip ridding it of some flour that had some how landed there, leaning into the taller girl and placing a soft kiss to her lips.

Brittany hums into her girlfriend’s lips and brings her right hand up to cup a tan cheek pulling the Latina closer. Right as a quiet moan escapes Santana’s lips and she leans into the blonde; they both are snapped out of their trance by the loud sound of Brittany’s phone ringing and vibrating against the kitchen counter. “Ugh seriously? I’m trying to get my mack on.” Santana scowls at the offending object on the counter, stepping out of Brittany’s embrace.

The blonde gives her girlfriend an apologetic look and then picks up her phone looking at the caller I.D. “I don’t know this number.” Brittany says out loud. ** **  
****

She shows the screen to the tanned woman next to her, “Umm, well it’s a L.A. zip code, maybe it’s Rachel calling from someone else’s phone or something, you should answer it.”

Brittany quickly swipes across the screen answering the phone call bringing the phone to her ear. “Hello?” She questions.

_“Hey Brittany!”_ A male voice travels through the phone.

Not noticing the voice, with wide eyes Brittany whispers back into the phone’s speaker. “How do you know my name?”

That earns a laugh from the other side of the phone. _“Brittany. It’s me, Mike. Mike Chang?”_

Brittany gasps and looks to her girlfriend, who is still standing next to her with a curious look. She silently mouths _‘It’s Mike!’_ and Santana nods her head in understanding. The blonde tilts her head to the side and excitedly squeals, “Mike! Hi! I thought you got abducted by aliens or something it’s been so long!”

Getting yet another laugh from Mike he asks the blonde, _“So Brittany I wanted to talk to you about something. I got a job offer for you.”_

Brittany raises her eyebrows and looks back to Santana. Deciding to put her phone on speaker so they both can listen to Mike’s proposal. “Okay?” she questions, encouraging him to continue.

_“Well I have been working with one of my college teacher’s dance company for about six and a half months now, choreographing and dancing for artist such as: Lady Gaga, Beyonce, and Katy Perry. Well we have a new tour coming up real soon for Iggy Azalea and my co-choreographer who also dances in all the numbers found out a couple weeks ago she’s pregnant. So she won’t be able to go on tour with us because it’s a six month tour, and that’s if we have no problems that makes us extend it. That means I’m short a choreographer, and a dancer. Now they have a list of people who want to try out for the position, but I talked to my manager and I told him I know an amazing dancer, and that you and I choreographed for Glee club all the time. Anyways, I talked him into letting me give you first dibs at this opportunity. It’s a pretty big deal Brittany, it could open up so many doors for you in the dancing business. Big name artist will get to see your talent and will beg to work with you.”_ Mike takes a deep breath after letting his proposal out, _“So what do you say?”_

To say Brittany was shocked was an understatement. Mike was right this was a huge opportunity and most people would kill to get their leg in the door like this. But there was something holding her back, she was shocked at the offer, but she wasn’t as excited as she always thought she would be. Santana and her use to talk all the time when they were in high school about what they would do once they were famous, and now here is her big opportunity. Between Mercedes tour and this one she was bound to be able to make a name for herself. She chews the inside of her cheek letting the millions of thoughts run through her head and before she knows it she is speaking back, giving Mike an answer, “Mike I am so flattered that you would do all that for me and that you think I’d be good enough to do that.” The blonde’s eyes drift to the Latina standing next to her who is wearing a shocked and excited face with wide eyes. “But, I’m sorry to say I’ll have to decline the offer. But, thank you so much Mike for thinking of me that really means a lot.”

She can barely make out the disappointed sigh that escapes the man’s lips and travels through the phone. _“No problem. You really are one of the best Brittany, but hey, the auditions don’t start for another couple of weeks, so if anytime between now and then you change your mind, just call me and the job is yours.”_

She smiles and nods her head even though he can’t see her, “Yeah okay, thanks again Mike.”

After exchanging their short goodbyes Brittany hangs up the phone and sets it back on the kitchen counter in the one flour-free spot. Her blue eyes look up from the counter to meet confused brown ones. “Brittany what was that about? That was an amazing opportunity. With a job like that, you could be famous. Everyone would want to work with you.”

Brittany grabs Santana’s hands and softly pulls her out of the kitchen and to the living room to sit on the couch, not even caring about the white powered trail she is leaving on the carpet and the grey fabric of the sofa. “I always thought being famous was my dream. I mean we talked about it all the time when we were younger. But then I realized that being famous was your dream, not mine. My dream was just being anywhere you were. Santana I love you, and yeah I had a lot of fun on tour with Mercedes, but that was because you were there too. There is no way I would leave for six months to go on tour. Being famous never was my dream, my dream was to dance and be with you. I can dance anywhere. I don’t need thousands of people calling my name, I just need you.”

Santana tries to blink away the tears slowly falling from her eyes and down her slightly flushed cheeks. Sniffling she brings her left hand up and wipes some tears from her face with the back of her hand. She gives the blonde a teary smile, her eyes shows all the love she holds for the taller girl staring back at her. “I love you so much Britt.” She leans over the couch and gives her girlfriend a simple, but slow peck to the lips. Withdrawing and leaning back into the couch she takes Brittany’s hand and asks, “But what is it that you wanna do then?”

Shrugging her shoulders the dancer ponders, “I don’t really know, maybe I’ll get a job at a dance studio around here or maybe I can be a choreographer at one of the small production theaters on the other side of town. I don’t know yet exactly what I want to do for the rest of my life except for one thing. All I know is whatever I’m doing I wanna be able to come home to you every night.”

Santana shakes her head with a smile and pulls Brittany’s arms dragging her willing body closer to her and wrapping her arms around her girlfriend. Brittany lays her head on the Latina’s chest. “I want that too Britt. I want that too.” Santana whispers softly, not even sure if the blonde that is cradled in her embrace even heard her.

A young guy in his early twenties is making his way through the small offices of a very fancy and luxurious building. He’s carrying a huge bouquet of red roses while trying to read the instructions that the lady at the reception desk gave him so he could find his way up into the small offices. When the guy reaches his destination he clears his throat. A group of ladies are talking animatedly in front of a very glamorous guy who apparently is sharing some good news with them. One of the ladies turns around and asks the young man, “Can I help you?”

The guy nods and promptly asks, “I’m looking for Mr. Hummel’s desk? **“**

Kurt pipes in and curiously tells the delivery man, “That would be me…”

The guy smiles. “I have a delivery for you Mr. Hummel.” Kurt tries to hide his excitement and stands up from his little desk and grabs the huge bouquet of roses. “Could you sign here?” The delivery guy hands Kurt a sheet of paper. Kurt quickly signs it and walks back to his desk to display his new Valentine’s gift.

The ladies, who are still there, start to ask questions excitedly demanding to know who sent the flowers. Kurt, who already knows who sent them, smiles and shrugs picking up the small card attached to the roses and reads out loud. “Kurt: I hope these roses brighten your day. The beauty of them cannot match the beauty of your eyes and smile, but can help you remember how much I love you. You are always in my heart! -Blaine.” The group of ladies start to scream excited, until their boss comes out of her office.

“What’s going on in here?” Thew woman asks. The ladies look at each other very slowly returning to their respective desks.

Kurt looks at his boss and apologizes, “Sorry about that Isabelle…the girls just got excited”

Isabelle smiles, “Don’t worry I just wanted to know what was the source of the commotion…By the way who sent you those flowers?”

Kurt blushes and a bit nervous he replies, “Well…ummm…my fiance sent them.”

Isabelle claps excited and adds, “Oh my God! Really?”

Kurt nods and looks down trying to hide his blush, “Yeah, he has been doing that all week” he adds rapidly glancing over his desktop where a cute teddy bear, two boxes of chocolates, some cheesy Valentine’s cards, a couple of Broadway tickets, and a small heart-shaped balloon are all on display.

Isabelle gasps excitedly, “Oh my God, Kurt! When are you going to introduce me to this Blaine guy? I’ve been wanting to meet him since, I don’t know when! I just wish I don’t have to wait until the wedding! I mean, we live in the same city, why don’t you just bring him one day to work? Or at least invite me over for dinner, or something!”

Kurt laughs, “Yeah, I’m sorry. I know you want to meet him and, I promise you it will happen soon. We just had some pretty rough months with all our friends still living with us. Then this past month was our first time really living together so we had to adjust ourselves to that. I think it’s safe to say that we are finally in this happy state but, I’ll plan a dinner so you can meet him soon.”

Isabelle smiles. “Awesome! I’m looking forward for that…by the way, what are you planning for Valentine’s Day? Because you’re planning something, right?”

Kurt’s smile falls. “Ummm…technically, yes, I’m planning something, but I still don’t know what…”

Isabelle’s eyes widen as she exclaims in shock, “What? Why? Valentine’s Day is this Saturday and it’s Thursday…That means you have like less than two days!”

Kurt begins to panic, “I know! Believe me that I know! But I’m really clueless! My band was going to help me tonight at the rehearsal, but they just texted me and now the rehearsal is cancelled and I don’t know what to do!”

Isabelle smiles warmly, “Don’t worry, come to my office and we can talk about it.”

Kurt smiles, “Really?”

Isabelle rolls her eyes. “Of course! Come on! I have some time! I’ll help you plan your Valentine’s date” Kurt stands up and follows his boss into her office.

When the blue-eyed man enters the office. He can’t help but gasp, as he always does, when the breathtaking view of Manhattan spreads in front of his eyes. Kurt loves this office and dreams to one day be able to have his own office with a similar view. He imagines his large desk with a golden name plate reading ‘ _Kurt Hummel’_ the words ‘ _chief editor’_ below it. Isabelle takes a seat by the couch and points Kurt to join her. “Now tell me why haven’t you planned anything? I have to admit this is so unusual, you’re the most organized man I know and that includes Tom Ford, who is like the king of organization and planning. Did you know he even plans his own bathroom breaks? Insane, right? But, anyways tell me what’s going on!?”

Kurt laughs and explains himself, “Well, I don’t know what to do because, Blaine is always the guy with the romantic gestures. You know what he did for the proposal. He was born a romantic, and I’m a romantic too, but sometimes I don’t show it like he does. I feel like this time I really need to do something _‘big’_ to prove him that I love him too. I have an idea, but I’m afraid that is not going to work, because I know he has this super amazing plan for Saturday, and although I still don’t know what it is, I do know it involves dinner somewhere in the city. My plan is at risk! And I’m afraid, because I don’t want him to think that I didn’t care enough to plan something special for him. I do care, but this is difficult for me, because sometimes I feel like there’s nothing big enough to show the depth of my feelings for him. Am I explaining myself okay?” He trails off.

Isabelle nods and reassures a nervous Kurt, “Perfectly, and I think that your problem is, you’re thinking too much. I’m sure that Blaine already knows how much you love him, if not he would never have asked you to marry him in the first place.”

Kurt smiles sheepishly, “Well, that’s true…”

Isabelle smiles and asks, “Can I give you some advice?” Kurt looks of desperation encourages Isabelle to continue, she knows right now all the advice would be well received. “Well, I think that you don’t need to make a big perfect date. If, like you say, he’s the romantic guy then I’m sure something more private and intimate will work.”

The corners of Kurt’s lips tug slightly into a frown, “Do you really think so?”

Isabelle grabs Kurt’s knee in a reassuring gesture, “Yes, don’t worry Kurt. Remember that you’re with your one true love. Whatever plan you can think of in the next couple of days is going to be perfect for him. You two have gone through a lot, so I understand why you want to prove him so bad that you really love him, but remember that sometimes less is more…”

Kurt smiles, he knows his boss, and friend, is right. He doesn’t need to make a huge surprise, something private between them will be enough. “Thank you…you’re right! We have gone through a lot, but now we’re happy and together. I know our date is going to be perfect, because we are perfect for each other”

Isabelle shines with pride. “That’s the Kurt I know!” In that moment the office phone rings, breaking their moment of happiness. Isabelle stands up to answer the call.

Kurt smiling mouths a _‘Thank you’_ and excuses himself, making his way out of the office.

When Kurt reaches his tiny desktop he leans over to smell the roses. The fragrance is amazing and he smiles warmly because Blaine always knows how to make him smile even when he’s not there. The now confident man grabs his phone and texts his fiance, “Thank you for the flowers! They are amazing just like you! I love you! See you tonight!” His phone _pings_ immediately and he reads the response, “ _I love you more_ ”. Kurt laughs and shaking his head he texts back, “I don’t think so…I love you more and that’s the end of it. Don’t you dare to text me back claiming otherwise because I won’t reply! XOXO” After a couple of seconds the phone _pings_ for the second time and Kurt reads, “ _How much do you love me?_ ” Kurt smiles and a song starts to ring in his head.

_(Kurt)…I know I’m still young but, I know how I feel. I might not have too much experience but, I know when love is real…_

He walks over the printer grabbing the papers that are filling out one by one. He grabs the short stack of papers and walks over to the strawberry blonde woman, who sits at a desk to the right of his, and hands her the bunch of papers.

_(Kurt)…By the way my heart starts pounding when I look into your eyes. I might look a little silly standing with my arms stretched open wide…._

Kurt looks up at the clock above the doorway and realizes it’s almost time to go home.

_(Kurt)…I love you this big, eyes have never seen… this big. No-one’s ever dreamed… this big. And I’ll spend the rest of my life explaining what words cannot describe but, I’ll try…I love you this big…_

He walks back over to his desk and starts powering off the computer. The talented boy then grabs his coat from the back of his desk chair and throws it around his shoulders, slipping his arms into the sleeves. Putting on his red scarf and pulling it up higher, making sure his neck is shielded from the cold New York weather that is whipping about outside. Then, he begins to make his way down the long hallways to the elevators that will take him to the exit of the building, but not before popping his head in Isabelle’s office and waving goodbye.

_(Kurt)…I’ll love you to the moon and back. I’ll love you all the time. Deeper than the ocean and higher than the pines…_

Kurt makes it to the first floor and heads to the front door, stepping out into the Manhattan cold to start his walk to the subway. He continues to sing as he makes his way down the icy sidewalks, pulling his jacket tighter around him.

_(Kurt)…Cause babe, you do something to me deep down in my heart. I know I look a little crazy standing with my arms stretched all apart._

Finally stepping onto the subway he finds a seat next to a pregnant lady. Sending her a smile as he sits down next to her. Looking about the subway cab he notices an elderly couple cuddled close to each other trying to stay warm. He smiles at the thought that sometime in the future he’s sure that would be him and Blaine.

_(Kurt)…I love you this big eyes have never seen… this big. No-one’s ever dreamed… this big and I’ll spend the rest of my life explaining what words cannot describe but, I’ll try I love you this big…_

Suddenly, Kurt remembers he never texted Blaine back. He pulls out his phone from the front pocket of his bag that is draped over his left shoulder and rereads Blaine’s last message. He looks up quickly, back to the two old men holding each other, smiling he looks back to his phone and types out a _‘this big’_ and attaches a photo Blaine took of him when they went ice skating at Central Park. Kurt had his arms spread far apart. Laughing slightly to himself he looks up and away from this phone’s screen and continues to sing.

_(Kurt)…So much bigger than I ever dreamed my heart ever would. I love you this big and I’d write your name in stars across the sky If I could, I would…_

It didn’t take long for Kurt to hear the familiar _ping_ of his phone go off. He looks back down to his phone and smiles at the funny pic Blaine sent back that shows his shocked face. He reaches his stop and as the subway doors open he quickly exits, in a hurry to get back home to his lover.

_(Kurt)…I love you this big. Oh, eyes have never seen…this big. No-one’s ever dreamed… this big and I’ll spend the rest of my life explaining what words cannot describe but, I’ll try…I love you this big…Oh, eyes have never seen… this big. No-one’s ever dreamed… this big and I’ll spend the rest of my life explaining what words cannot describe but, I’ll try…I love you this big._

Kurt arrives home and as usual he yells, “I’m ho–” but can’t end the phrase because he’s attacked by a short black-haired man who’s hugging him tightly and saying, “I love you that big too!” Kurt laughs and kisses his fiance. Now he’s sure that a more intimate and private surprise is what he needs to do to prove the man he has in front of him how much he really loves him.

The bald headed middle aged man sits in his director’s chair holding a mega phone. “Places everyone, places!” He yells clapping his hands. “It’s late and we need to finish this scene quickly! We are running up the budget and nobody wants to be here past midnight!” There is a silence among the cast and crew on set, no one daring to speak up. Deciding it was probably best to just take their places, Rachel and Wesley make their way to their first marks. The director grabs a script and using the mega phone he says, “Let’s rehearse one last time the scene step by step. Rachel. You’re by the picnic blanket and Wesley, as Ben is going to lean over and kiss you. You’re not expecting the kiss so at first you have to show some resistance, but you eventually surrender to the kiss, but remember you’re in high school so let’s keep it PG. Then Savannah enters the scene and breaks the spell.”

Blair raises her hand. Without being called on she speaks anyway, “I have a question, do I have to scream when I see them or just gasp?”

The director rolls his eyes, because he has answered that same questions thousands of times before, “Yes Blair you gasp and then let out a small scream, okay? Everybody got it? Let’s get this done. 4…3…2…” He mouths the word _‘One’_ as he points to the actors in front of him as the cameraman moves in closer.

_(scene) Rachel sits on the picnic blanket that is stretched out on the floor of the empty high school classroom. She looks really nervous as Ben sits down next to her. She opens her mouth to say something to him trying to fill the awkward silence with meaningless conversation, the next thing she notices is Ben leaning in closer to her. Her eyes widen in shock as his lips graze hers._

Stepping out of character Rachel brings her hand up and pulls Wesley’s face closer into her deepening the kiss when she was suppose to be playing her shocked character. She can’t help it though, the feeling of Wes’ lips on her for the first time is amazing and her body betrays her, falling into him. When their lips part, leaving their faces only inches apart Wesley stares into Rachel’s eyes. Then, as if he has no will power of his own, he leans in for another kiss. He wants to feel those amazingly soft lips again, but before he gets the chance to relive what he believes is as close to heaven as he will ever be, Blair who plays Savannah in Rachel’s show, enters the classroom, looking as if she was searching for someone. However, what she finds is not what she was expecting. She lets out a loud gasp as the two stars stay staring into each others eyes, oblivious at the commotion, as if the world around them had faded away leaving just them. The director lets out a loud disapproving sigh and yells, “Cut!!”

Snapping out of the hypnotizing gaze she was locked in with the brown haired boy, Rachel stands up quickly realizing what just happened. _‘How could I?’_ She thinks to herself, knowing she stepped over a boundary. She is an actress. She should be able to keep control of her emotions and know when acting is just acting. Terrified and embarrassed Rachel turns and runs off the set, not realizing Wesley was not too far behind her.

The brunette woman reaches the door of her trailer labeled with a gold star and swings it open. She steps inside and slams it shut. She paces around ranting to herself about how she might have just messed everything up. She realizes she needs to get out of there quickly, there is no way she could face Wes right now. She pulls her shirt over her head and discards it somewhere behind her, then quickly shimmies out of her plaid skirt. She pulls on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt that were crumbled up on the sofa inside her trailer from when she had taken them off when changing into her character’s outfit earlier. She looks down to the floor, spinning in circles trying to find her shoes when there is a knock on her trailer door. Her breath gets caught in her throat. _‘This is it’_ she thinks to herself, _‘This is where they fire me and find someone else to play me in my own show.’_ She starts to panic. Deciding she has no other choice than to accept her fate and open the door, she swallows thickly before slowly reaching her hand towards the silver door knob. Time seems to be moving really slow and she can feel the blood rushing in her veins as her heart beat starts to quicken. Her hand finally reaches the cold metal of the door knob, she slowly twists it open revealing an out of breath and nervous looking Wesley Grey.

It is strange to Rachel that with everything that just happened and her immediate need to flee from the set, the same man she just lost control over was standing in front of her. As soon as she lays eyes on him she feels her body relax. Her body was reacting to him even when her mind was screaming for her to leave before he yells at her for being inappropriate and unprofessional.

“H-hi..” The brown haired man stutters.

Nervously biting her lip, Rachel replies, “Hi.”

Wesley looks down at his feet, shoving his hands in his pockets to keep himself from wringing his wrist. It’s a habit he noticed he started when he was younger for when he got nervous, “That was pretty intense back there.” He softly whispers, his bright blue eyes traveling up to meet warm brown ones.

“Yeah. Look Wesley I’m so-so-sorry, I didn’t mean–”

Rachel begins to rant, but Wesley quickly cuts her off, “I liked it.”

The brunette woman snaps her eyes up quickly, staring back at the actor with wide eyes, “You did?” Rachel lets the words slip out before she registers what she was saying.

Wesley smiles a crooked smile, his eyes never leaving hers, silently telling her he was telling the truth, “I-I actually wanted to ask you something…” He trails off. 

Clearing her throat and pretending to be confident she says, “Oh,…well I have to go, to ummm dinner….I-I have dinner reservations. I mean plans, I have dinner plans tonight. Ummm with my friends…Yeah, Santana and Brittany, I’ve told you about them right? Yes, so I’m in a hurry…Gotta get there early because Santana gets really upset when we don’t get good seats…” She lies through her teeth, feeling overwhelmed with being alone in close proximities with the charming, handsome man. Needing to get away quick because now that she knows what it is like, all she can think about is wanting the feeling of his lips pressed back against hers again. Looking back down to his feet Wesley lifts his right hand and runs it through his hair, trying to get the courage to just spill the question he has been dying to ask her for a week now.

He finally saw his opening after the kiss, now knowing for sure that Rachel feels the same way, but now he had to hurry up and just say it before his brunette Cinderella ran away. “Oh. Okay…Well, umm I was just wondering…Before you go…If maybe…” He takes another deep breath and squeezes his eyes shut, shaking the nervousness from his head, “Would you like to go to dinner…On Saturday night? ** **  
****

At this point Rachel is running around still trying to find her shoes, and car keys, so she can make a quick retreat, but when she hears the words fall from gorgeous, intoxicating lips she freezes in her place. Slowly, turning her head to the left looking to the man who still stands on the top step in front of her trailer doorway and she asks, “Like a date?” Wesley, with a new found confidence nods his head with a shy smirk on his face.

“Yes.” He says simply.

“B-but Saturday is Valentine’s day.” She drops the few articles of clothing she had in her hands and looks intently to her handsome co-star.

“Yes I know that. Some people say that having a first date on Valentine’s is a jinx, but I say screw it, it’s romantic don’t you think?” Wesley is shocked with himself wondering where this all the sudden confidence came from and where the shy stuttering boy went, but Rachel is now smiling back at him so he thinks it must be working so he goes with it. “So, what do you say?”

Rachel smiles a big smile, subconsciously her hand travels to the small tattoo that reads _‘Finn_ ’ that is on the right side of her ribcage, tracing over the name she could never forget. Remembering the conversations she had with her friends she opens her mouth to respond.

Will makes his way home after a brutal Vocal Adrenaline practice. He’s tired, the kids still aren’t putting any passion into their songs and he’s so frustrated because he can’t make them feel passion for the music. He knows they have to do that by themselves, but sometimes he wishes he could help a little more in the process. He walks through the sideways and all he can think about is going home to see his beautiful wife and son. He slowly pushes open the door quietly, not sure if Daniel’s sleeping. “I’m home.” He says in a loud whisper closing the door in a way to make sure it doesn’t slam.  

“We’re in the kitchen!” Emma calls. Will smiles and sets his bag on the table and heads into the kitchen. Emma is sitting on a chair in front of Daniel’s highchair feeding him some applesauce that has made it’s residence all over his son’s little face.

“There’s my boy!” Will says excitedly pressing a kiss to his son’s head. Somehow getting applesauce on his face too. He quickly wipes it off thinking of the bath they will definitely have to give him when he is finished. “And how are you?” He asks turning to give Emma a kiss on the cheek.

“I’m good. This little one has been surprisingly good all day.” Emma tells him cheerfully. “I’m glad that you’re home. How was work?”

Will shrugs, “It was okay.” Confessing it with a drawn out sigh. “The kids are still having issues with the songs…But we’ll get it worked out in time for Regionals.” He hoped.

Emma smiles reassuringly to her husband, “Just have some patience Rome wasn’t built in a day”

Will smiles because just a couple of days before someone told him the same advice. In that moment he realizes he didn’t share the news with his wife, “Oh! By the way! I forgot to tell you who came to visit me the other day” He playfully hits himself in the head. Emma frowns confused and Will exclaims, “Mercedes!”

Emma smiles surprised, “Oh, she’s back from her tour?” She asks wiping up some excess applesauce Daniel was spitting out of his mouth with the baby spoon. Before she realizes it is useless, he already has it everywhere.

“Yeah, apparently she got back a few months ago.” Will replies. “She came to talk to me about how she wants to get Sam back, though things don’t seem to go well between them.”

Emma knows part of that story thanks to Sam “I know…High school never ends.” She whispers with a laugh.

“No, it doesn’t apparently.” Will agrees. “She was going on and on about–” Suddenly, Will is cut off by Daniel’s loud cries.

“Oh…Shh shh shh.” Emma cooes as she sets down the spoon and jar of food, and  lifts the baby from the highchair. Will watches her juggle Daniel in one arm, bouncing him on her hip trying to calm him down and reaching out for a stack of baby wipes with the other. Noticing her struggle with the mess he steps in to help her.

“Here, let me try.” Will says peeling the sticky boy from his mother’s arms. Ignoring the mess himself he places another kiss to the almost one year old boy’s head as he continues to scream and cry. “I missed my baby boy today.” Emma nods and starts running the baby wipes up and down her forearms making sure she doesn’t leave any sticky spot on her. Her OCD has gotten a lot better through the years, but every now and then it sparks up and takes over. Will is always there to help her when she needs him, they are a good team together.

Will grabs a washcloth from the kitchen drawer and cleans off Daniel’s applesauce coated face. Knowing his son is fussy from being hungry and tired, he grabs the bottle that’s sitting on the counter and tries to think of the perfect song to help the little boy calm down and stop fighting sleep.

_(Will)…Well I just heard the news today, it seems my life is gonna change. I closed my eyes, begin to pray. Then tears of joy, stream down my face…_

The curly hair man leans Daniel back to lay in his arms and slips the bottle between the baby’s lips and then heads down that hallway towards the nursery.

_(Will)…With arms wide open under the sunlight, welcome to this place I’ll show you everything…With arms wide open. With arms wide open…_

Daniel’s loud cries turn into just soft whimpers, flickering his eyes open and shut as he sucks on the bottle, a tell tale sign he is getting sleepy.

_(Will)…Well I don’t know if I’m ready, to be the man I have to be. I’ll take a breath, I’ll take her by my side. We stand in awe, we’ve created life…_ ****  
****

After Daniel finishes what little bit of milk was left in the bottle, Will shifts his son to lay his head on his chest  as he pats his back trying to help his little one burp. Letting a small laugh escape his lips when he hears the tiniest burp come from the small child that lays against him.

_(Will)…With arms wide open under the sunlight, welcome to this place I’ll show you everything. With arms wide open now everything has changed. I’ll show you love I’ll show you everything…With arms wide open. With arms wide open…_

Will looks down at his son and sighs in contentment. He loves these moments with his pride and joy, Daniel. He is always the most calm when placed against his father’s chest, close enough to hear his heart beat. The baby lays there quietly while his big hazel eyes scan about the room, taking notice to everything. Then looking back up to his father when he hears his singing voice.

_(Will)…I’ll show you everything, aw yeah. With arms wide open, wide open…_

Will gets up from the padded rocking chair he is sitting in and goes over to place the tiny human on the changing table, taking off his sticky onesie.

_(Will)…If I had just one wish only one demand. I hope he’s not like me, I hope he understands that he can take this life and hold it by the hand and he can greet the world with arms wide open…_

He secures a fresh diaper on his son before pulling on a light blue fleece sleeper over his body. Will snaps the buttons on the right shoulder and zips up the zipper that travels from the right leg to the middle of his chest.

_(Will)…With arms wide open under the sunlight, welcome to this place I’ll show you everything. With arms wide open now everything has changed. I’ll show you love I’ll show you everything. With arms wide open. With arms wide open…_

Lifting the small perfect child back into his arms and patting the small of his back in a soft, soothing, pattern.

_(Will)…I’ll show you everything, aw yeah. With arms wide open…Wide open._

The curly hair man places a soft kiss to his son’s temple while he watches his eyelids get heavy and fall shut. Rocking the baby for another minute longer to make sure he was fully asleep, Will walks the short distance to the white wooden crib and softly lays the sleeping baby down for the night. Running his hands over his soft little head, Will smiles, “Good night little man.” He walks to the dresser flipping on Daniel’s baseball night light and turns off the main light in the room. With one last look towards the crib he walks out of the room, closing the door behind him.

A brown haired man sits in on the couch next to an empty wheelchair. The small 24 inch flat screen T.V. that sits across the room from him flickers between different colored screens, showing some action movie he isn’t paying much attention to. Artie is lost in his thoughts, thinking about how pathetic he probably looks sitting at home alone on Valentine’s Day. He keeps telling himself he doesn’t care. That there’s a marathon of the Godfather movies on tonight that he really wants to watch, and he has an awesome online date with his Call of Duty video game. He wants to believe those are the reasons why he didn’t ask anybody out for Valentine’s. But deep down a small part, one that he is adamantly fighting, does care. ** **  
****

His cell phone that is sitting on the end table, next to the all white couch he is sitting on, starts to ring with the song _Thrift Shop_ by Macklemore. He looks at the screen and sees that his friend Luke is calling him. He sighs, battling with the devil and angel currently sitting on his shoulders. The devil on his left side is telling him to not answer, cut off the world and seclude himself from everyone and spend the rest of the day doing what he has been doing all day so far. Mope, while sitting on his couch stuffing his face with Cheetos. The angel on his right shoulder is telling him to answer it.

After some more inner turmoil he picks up the phone quickly before it went to voice-mail. “Hello?”

_“Artie! My man! Quit moping and get your ass up and come hang out with us! Damien, his sister, and I are going out to McGee’s with a few other people!”_

Artie thinks about it for a minute, he likes that place, but deep down he just wants to stay home and get depressed while everyone else is having fun. “I don’t know Luke I actually have some plans…”

Artie hears a snort over the phone and his friend retorts, _“Yeah, playing video games and watching movies are not plans Mr. ‘I don’t go out on dates for Valentine’s!’ Get your ass up and join us! Is going to be fun! I promise!”_

Artie hesitates for a couple of seconds before sighing and giving in to his friend, “Okay I’ll meet you there later”

His friend yells excitedly, _“That’s what I wanted to hear! See ya later man!”_ Artie smiles as he hangs up. Now he has plans for Valentine’s, not the romantic ones you would expect, but at least he’ll have the chance to spend some time with his friends **.**

\-----

Elsewhere in town a blue-eyed boy is knocking at a wooden door. After some knocks, the door swings open and a tall boy with dark hair exclaims excited, “Kurt! I didn’t expect to see you until later, what is it?”

“Hi Ell, sorry, but my plans changed! Blaine’s at home. so I can’t leave all the stuff I bought there. That’s why I bring it here, hope you don’t mind.”

Elliott smiles, “Not at all, but come in let me help you with that.” The two friends carry all the bags and boxes Kurt brought, traveling to the living room to chat a bit.

“So…did you finally find out your boy’s plans?”

Kurt shakes his head. “No, I think he’s mastering the skill of secrecy, but I know we’re not staying home”

Elliott frowns confused. “Then why did you bring all of these bags and boxes here?”

“Because he’s there and he’s waiting for me so we can go to _‘our Valentine’s surprise’_ date”

Elliott laughs sarcastically, “You sound really excited about your date”

“I am, just, I hate not knowing what to expect and I’m afraid because I think my surprise is not as big as his…” Kurt pouts at his friend.

Elliott rolls his eyes. “I don’t know how many times we’ve talked about this, but stop worrying about that, okay? I’m going to help you, so I can assure you that when you two get home the place will be as romantic as you want it to be”

“Thanks Elliott, you’re a really great friend. I hope I’m not spoiling your Valentine’s plans for helping me…” He sends him a warm smile.

Elliott quickly shakes his head while giving him a mischievous grin, “Don’t worry, my date will be here until almost midnight so we’re good”

Kurt smiles, “You have to tell me all about him later.” Elliott nods and when Kurt’s about to thank him again for his help his phone rings.

He pulls it out from his pocket and smiles at the screen answering immediately, “ _Hi there, handsome!_ ” The voice of a sweet boy resounds through the phone.

Kurt laughs at his witty fiance, “Hi there handsome, yourself.”

The boy at the other side of the line chuckles, _“Are you coming home or not? We need to go!”_

Kurt rolls his eyes and smiles at his friend seated in front of him whose silently asking him what’s going on. “Yeah, I’m on my way…I just had to make some arrangements for your surprise.”

_“My surprise? I thought you’d said you didn’t have anything planned_!”

“Well I lied…as you did, so we’re even.” Kurt laughs, knowing he is driving Blaine crazy.

Blaine, getting slightly impatient, asks, _“What’s the surprise?”_

Kurt shakes his head and smiles playfully, “No sir, you’ll have to wait till later to find out!”

Blaine starts to complain, _“But that’s–”_

“Stop complaining! You’ll find out soon! See you in a few! Love ya!” He hangs up the phone, not giving the hazel-eyed boy the chance to say another word. Kurt quickly says his goodbyes to Elliott and makes his way home not without thanking his friend again for helping him with his Valentine’s surprise. ** **  
****

The blue-eyed boy arrives home and as soon as he slides the metal door open he’s surprised by a very dressed up version of Blaine. He’s wearing a black suit with a light pink shirt and a black tie, but what really catches Kurt’s attention is his hair. It looks different, it has only a slight amount of gel in it, differing from the excessive amount he usually wears. It is a little less styled and had slight waves in it, which Kurt believes make him incredibly more attractive. Kurt stands in the door looking at his fiance who does a little spin on his heels showing his outfit of choice to the love of his life.

“What do you think?” Blaine asks holding his hands up showing off his suite, in a Vanna White fashion.

“Wow. Just…Wow.” Kurt is a loss for words, “Seriously you look amazing. It’s a good thing we are about the same size, I’m totally going to borrow that outfit one day.” He laughs at himself. Blaine gives his fiance a loving look walking over to him, bringing a hand up to his cheek and running his thumb over the skin found there. He leans in for a slow but soft and simple kiss. Pulling back and looking into sparkling blue eyes he gives Kurt a smile, “Are you ready to go?” Kurt, still stuck in a daze with the combination of how amazing his fiance looks and the amazing feeling of his soft kiss, he just slowly nods his head and lets Blaine lace their fingers together walking hand in hand toward the loft door.

Rachel is running around her condo trying to get ready for her first date with Wes. Ever since she said yes to him she has been freaking out about the clothes, makeup and hairstyle she’s going to wear for the special occasion. She has her phone wedged between her shoulder and her ear while her hands are elbowed deep in her dresser draws rummaging through all of her clothes. _“Girl, how have you been? I miss you guys so much. I really need to take a trip out there to visit.”_ Mercedes voice travels through the phone.

“You really should! We would have so much fun, just like the good old days. When do you think you could come out here, aren’t you kind of on break from working since the tour?

Mercedes chuckles through the phone, _“Yeah, I’m off, but I don’t know if the girls filled you up with the details about my future plans…”_

Rachel nods, though she knows her friend can’t see her, “Oh, yeah! You went to Lima…How’s that going? Are you and Sam together again?”

Mercedes laughs, _“Ummm no…Things with him are still rocky”_  Rachel slams shut her top drawer, moving down to the next and Mercedes asks, _“Ummm…Rachel?”_

“Yeah?” Rachel asks a bit distracted.

Mercedes hesitates for a second before asking, “Ummm…what are you doing?”

Rachel freezes and exclaims, “Nothing!”

“Are you okay, Rachel?”

“Yeah, I’m great.” She lies, quietly opening the next drawer with shaky hands, “Enough about me what’s going on with you and Sam?”

Mercedes lets out a sigh and starts rambling about everything that has happened since she came back to Lima, _“But on the bright side we are having lunch today, it’s just as friends, but I’ll take it.”_

Rachel is only half listening while still looking through her clothes, “Ah-ha! I found it!”

Confused, Mercedes asks, _“Found what? What are you doing?”_ She wonders for the second time.

Caught red-handed Rachel can’t come up with an excuses fast enough. “Umm, nothing. I’m sorry to cut this short Mercedes, but I have to go.” After earning a strange and confused _‘bye’_ from her long time friend Rachel hangs up the phone.

Pulling her shirt above her head and tossing it on her bed; she slips into the shirt she found admiring herself in her full length mirror on the back of her bathroom door. “This will work.” She speaks to herself, “It says I’m trying, but not being desperate.”

\-----

In another part of the city Santana makes her way through the front door of her and Brittany’s shared apartment. The only sounds she can make out are the sounds of clothes hitting the floor and hangers rattling. Making her way through the living room and down the short hallway she stops in the doorway of their bedroom off to the left. The Latina stands there confused watching as clothes fly from inside of the closet and land in random spots all over their bedroom floor.

Walking farther in the room, the brunette starts to pick up the varieties of clothes that littered the floor. Santana walks towards the closet where she sees the tall blonde rummaging through the hangers that line both sides of the closet. After being hit in the face by a red t-shirt the blonde just threw over her shoulder, Santana decides to speak up. “Okay hold up, Brittany what are you doing?” Sounding kind of irritated of the mess her girlfriend is making.

Turning around with a slight pout Brittany answers, “Well, you won’t tell me where we are going today, so I don’t know what I’m suppose to wear.”  

Santana immediately softens and walks closer to the blue-eyed woman. “Britt, you’re beautiful in anything you wear.” She sends her a quick smirk before continuing “And I told you to just dress comfortably.

Brittany tilts her head to the side, “Yeah, but my comfortable or your comfortable? Because your comfortable consist of outfits like your black denim skinny jeans, tight leather jacket, and your Christian Louboutin five inch stilettos. Even the white skin tight jeans you have, you know the one with the belt that you always wear with the pink shirt that has the cut out in the back. I love that one on you. Actually I love them both, you look really hot.” Shaking her head from getting side tracked in her argument, “Wait, that’s not the point, the point is you telling me to dress comfy could mean two different things your comfy or mine as in, an old pair of jeans and a hoodie. I have spent all day going through everything and still have no idea what to wear, I even missed Lord Tubbington’s weekly A.A. meeting.”

Santana laughs at her girlfriend’s truth and nods in agreement, “Well that may be true, but you totally rock the hoodie and sneakers look with no make-up on. You’re always beautiful Britt. Just throw something on and get ready for your surprise.” She reaches down and grabs a blue shirt that has flying birds all over it and a pair of white denim capris and hands them to her girlfriend. “Here wear this, I love those pants.” She gives her another knowing wink and walks the short distance closer to the blonde and kissing her cheek, “I’ll be by the front door when you’re ready. I really think your going to love it.” Brittany bites her bottom lip with a slight blush and turning around to hurrying to get dressed, with a very excited smile.

There are two figures sitting at the table inside Breadstix. The only thing that can be heard between the two is the clanking of their fork and knives against glass plates.  A shy girl reaches her hand out grasping the tall glass of ice water, feeling the wet condensation on the palm of her hand. Bring the glass to plump lips she takes a small sip of her drink. The boy seated in front of her quickly glances at her, eyes flickering towards her lips then snapping away as if he was a small child being caught with his hand in the cookie jar. He returns his attention towards the plate of fettuccine alfredo he has in front of him. The girl smiles coyly and takes another bite of parmesan chicken looking down and trying to hide her now sparkling eyes.

A blonde old lady stops by the table, “Would you guys like a refill?” Breaking up the awkward tension between the two, they both look up to the waitress, but Mercedes speaks first, “Yes please.”

“What was it you had dear?” The waitress asks sweetly reaching for her glass.

“Just water ma’am.”

With a small nod the blonde lady looks to her left towards Sam silently asking him the same question, “No I’m good, thank you.” He says quietly then presses his lips together in a tight lipped smile. The older lady walks away to fill up Mercedes glass. In the short time the waitress was away and the two ex lovers shared more silent and awkward glances, their eyes secretly telling the other more than words ever would. They are once again interrupted, in a good way they both thought, by the waitress bringing back the glass of water.

Before she walks away to leave them to their food she says looking towards Sam, “You know we have a gentlemen here selling roses by the front door?” Sam looks over his shoulder past all the dangling Valentine’s decorations to the man in a black suit standing by the front door with dozens upon dozens of roses, “I bet your girlfriend here would love one.” Looking to her right to Mercedes she continues, “Wouldn’t you, honey?”

Mercedes blushes hard and is forced to look away as Sam’s mouth hangs open at a lost for words, “Umm, no we’re not…She’s not…I mean…Um.” Mercedes looks up and says, “We’re just friends.” Following Mr. Schue’s advice.

The waitress smiles apologetically and adds, “I’m sorry, I thought you two were here on a date.” She then turns and leaves to check on her next table. The two now deemed friends stare at their food watching the steam as it rises off their still hot plates.

Letting out a deep sigh Mercedes speaks, “Sam what are we doing? We used to be such great friends, and now its like we can’t even talk to each other. This shouldn’t be this awkward.”

Sam shifts uncomfortably in the plastic seat slowly letting his eyes shift apologetically to the woman across from him. He runs his hand through his short spiked blond hair, “Yeah, you’re right, and I’m sorry. I don’t mean to try and make this awkward, I guess it’s just confusing on how we go back to being friends now. I mean, are you sure you’re okay with this? Us hanging around each other on Valentine’s day, just as friends, because just the other day you told me you were in love with me still…”

Mercedes in the back of her head screams _‘No_ ’, because she wants more, but Mr. Schue’s words about giving Sam time keep ringing in her head, so she says, “Yes! I mean Sam you are always going to have a special place in my heart, but we are just two single friends keeping each other company on Valentine’s day, so we aren’t that depressing person who would be sitting at home watching Gone With the Wind and eating a carton of ice cream.”

Sam cocks his lips to the side in a grin, laughing at Mercedes joke. “I’d probably be watching Avatar.”

The diva across the table laughs a loud chuckle, feeling the tension disappear between them. “Avatar is 100 times better than watching the Notebook! That’s for sure!”

Sam laughs, “ **So** , that means you would probably be watching The Notebook?” Mercedes nods and Sam making his best Ryan Gosling impression adds, “If you’re a bird I’m a bird…”

Mercedes laughs loudly, “That was not even remotely similar to Noah’s voice, and that was the worst line you could have chosen for that movie. It’s cheesy and thinking about it is sorta depressing. Not my cup of tea for Valentine’s Day.” Sam makes a sad face and they both burst out laughing.

Just like that the two ex-lovers were falling out of their seats laughing with each other, feeling as if they were getting back to who they were before they dated, back to being each others best friends. It was a little bittersweet for Mercedes. She was happy to be able to joke and laugh with her best friend again, but when she looks to Sam she can’t help when her heart skips a beat. But this is what Sam could give her right now and she would take anything she could get from the man she was still in love with.

The music from the jukebox playing inside the pub is reverberating against the walls and seeping through the cracks in the front door, out into the sidewalk,  where people roamed about. Artie has just arrived at McGee’s pushing with the palms of his glove covered hands on the wheels of his chair making his way inside and away from the New York’s cold almost evening air. Taking a look around the small room that has a bar to it’s left and about seven booths through it. The brunette boy spots Trevor, who is off to the right in a half circle booth tucked away in the corner surrounded with a few people Artie did know, and few didn’t know, totaling in 5 fellow film students. Being spotted by Luke the dirty blonde haired boy stands up from the middle of the booth and calls out to him, “Yo! Artie, my man! over here!” He waves his hand at Artie, encouraging him to join the group.

Coming up in front of the table Luke starts to introduce him to everyone who was sitting around them. “This over here,–” He points to his right at a dark haired freckle faced boy, “–is Timmy. Next to him is Jack.”  He moves his finger over to point towards a red headed guy with glasses, “Though you already know him from Introduction to Filmmaking. To my left is Michael and his twin sister Michelle.” He nods his head over to the two blonde’s at the far end of the booth. “Then we have Damien, but he’s in the women’s bathroom, probably trying to pick up some chick, so who knows if he’s coming back.” Luke laughs off. “Everyone if you don’t already know him, this is my man Artie, dude! he is man skilled with a camera.” Timmy and Michael reach over and high-five him as everyone greets him and welcomes him to the table.

Artie falls easily into conversation with the other film majors. It was nice to have friends that had the same passions as him. It reminded him of his days at McKinley in the Glee Club. “So, Artie, I heard you finished casting your final project?” Michael asks.

A smile spreads on his lips as he replies eagerly, “Yeah, it was treacherous, some of the people that signed up were just awful. Someone should really tell a few of them to consider changing their major.” The group all laughs in agreeance, “But, yes, I think I finally found all my characters and I’m excited to start working on it.” The group then erupts into conversations about their individual film projects, bragging about the equipment they got to borrow from the school to use, or the places they were going to film, and the stresses of other classes. With a smile on his face Artie dove into the conversations, thinking how he is glad he came out tonight. Looking around at his fellow classmates, Artie notices that there are three empty seats with drinks in front of them. He scrunches his eyebrows in confusion because Luke introduced him to everyone and the only person missing was Damien, “Hey Luke! What’s up with the two other empty seats here?”  

Luke looks across the table to Artie then over to the two empty seats in question. “Oh, one is for Damien’s sister and the other is for my girl who had to work late, but said she was gonna be here soon.”

After hearing a knock at the her front door, Rachel dries her sweaty palms on the fabric of her dress and slowly unlocks and opens the door. The sunset’s dim lighting glows behind the handsome man standing on her front step. Half his face is hidden behind a huge bouquet of peonies. The man moves the flowers to the right and peeks his head around them and nervously exclaims, “Hi!” With a crooked smile he extends his arm to the brunette handing her the flowers.

Rachel smiles and grabbing the flowers replies with a shy, “Thank you.” A slight blush and a laugh spread through her face as she adds, “Oh and Hi.” She tucks a stray raven lock behind her ear. “Um, let me go put these in water and then I’ll be ready to go.” She flashes him a grin.

She turns to walk back inside, but is stopped by a sweet velvet but deep voice, “Wait! Before you go…”

Rachel slowly turns around with a raised questioning eyebrow. Wesley runs his hands through his hair and with a shy smile and sparkling blue eyes he looks up to her and just above a whisper he says, “I just wanted to tell you that you look beautiful”

Rachel blushes and a shy smiles escapes from her lips, “Thank you…You-you look handsome too…” Wesley smiles and Rachel practically runs to the kitchen to hide her blushing cheeks and her silly smile.

When Rachel emerges from the kitchen Wesley is waiting by the door with what looks like a blindfold. The blue-eyed man, with a huge grin on his face, asks, “Are you ready to go?” Rachel moves her head back forth and Wesley continues with confidence in his voice, “Well, since you’re a very smart girl and I’m not very good with surprises, I’ll have to rely on traditional methods to get to surprise you…”

Rachel looks at him completely confused. “Come again?”

“I’m going to blindfold you for a little while.” Wesley lets out a quick laugh before replying.

Rachel laughs even more confused, “You what?"

“I’m going to blindfold you…I know it’s silly, and probably a cliche, but if I let you see where we’re going then you’ll ruin the surprise…And I’m taking you to a very special place”

Rachel smiles sweetly at him. For her, this man sometimes acted like a fairy tale prince. “Okay, but don’t ruin my makeup…it took me a while.”

Wesley laughs and raising his hand in a promising gesture, “I wouldn’t dare to do that…I already told you, you look beautiful and I want everyone to see I’m the luckiest guy in the world because the most beautiful girl in L.A. is having dinner with me.” Rachel blushes brightly. Until now Wesley had been flirting slightly with her, but today he was flirting in full force, pulling all the right cards and that made her feel extremely nervous. Wesley steps closer, “Okay so let me cover your eyes…I promise it will only be for a moment.” Rachel nods and lets Wesley blindfold her and help her walk all the way down to his car.

The drive to the very special place was short. He wasn’t lying when he said it would only take a moment. Wesley helps Rachel climb out of the car. When he grabs her hands he notices she’s cold, “You’re cold…Are you alright?”

“Yeah, just a bit nervous. The trip was short so I don’t know if you drove like a maniac or if we were just conveniently close.”

Wesley burst out laughing, “I didn’t drive like a maniac…The trip was just short…” Rachel tries to think of special places near her apartment, but nothing comes to mind. Wes runs his hands up and down the brunette’s forearms creating some friction to warm her up, “Come on let me get you inside.” He wraps his arms around her waist and guides her to the front door. Leaning his body a little closer to her, Rachel is consumed with the intoxicating smell of his colon. A shiver then runs down her neck when she feels his hot breath hit the nape of her neck as he whispers in her ear, “Do you remember the first time we met?” It was a rhetorical question but, Rachel nods anyway as he continues, “I do, we were at this restaurant with the cast from the show, you were wearing a black and white dress that hung on one shoulder and made your legs go on for days.” Rachel lets out a small whimper, “And you sat across the table from me. I remember looking at you and knowing it wasn’t going to be hard to play the guy who was into you because you were, are, so beautiful. That was the day that you seeped into my mind and you haven’t left since. That’s why this place is so important to me.” He sees Rachel’s head turn, still wearing the blindfold. He slowly brings his hands up and peels the offending object off the brunette’s eyes

His ears are immediately met with the loud gasp escaping Rachel’s lips. “Oh my God, Wes!”

They were standing outside of a huge extravagant hotel that was about six stories high. The building is lined in lights and a circular water fountain with reflecting pools framing the entrance. The lights were shining bright, reflecting off the marble flooring leading all the way up to the large glass windows that adorned the restaurant entrance. “I can’t believe you remember this place, that was months ago and the network has sent us to many fine restaurants.”

Wes shoots her a smile, “Yeah, well, how could I forget the first time I laid eyes on you. Now come on let’s get inside.” The brown haired man places his hand on the small of her back ushering her softly to the glass door entrance.

Stepping inside, Wesley goes up to the headwaiter and gives the man his name. Both T.V. stars are lead to their seats. Rachel looks around taking in her surroundings. The restaurant has a modern classy look to it. The floors are lined with dark hard wood. The hanging lights create a dim glow in the atmosphere around them which was a drastic difference from the last time she had been there during lunch time. The night time setting gave the room a mystical effect, as if they were walking into a dream where everything was possible.

They finally reach their seats and Rachel can’t help but blush for what seems to be the millionth time tonight when Wesley runs over to her side of the table and pulls out her chair for her. Rachel smooths out the bottom of her dress before sitting down and scooting closer to the small brown square table. She looks up to her date and rest her hand on top his that now resides on her shoulder. Their eyes lock for a moment and her warm brown eyes are saying the words she can’t find. Wesley gives her shoulder a squeeze and takes his seat across from her. Right as Wesley sits down a blonde haired waiter comes over handing the two their menus. The blue-eyed man looks over the menu for a second before turning back to the waiter, “Can we get one of your vegetarian menus please?”

“Yes, sir.” The waiter replies immediately in a professional tone, before ducking and walking away.

With wide eyes and a light curious smile, Rachel asks, “H-how did you know?”

Wesley shrugs, “I like to pay attention to the little things, that’s how I get to know a person I find interesting.”

Rachel looks down and grabbing her napkin to place it in her lap she pries, “So you found me interesting?”

“Very…” Wes replies, using his usual sweet velvet, but sexy voice with a hint of nervousness in it.

After ordering the food Wesley asks, “Do you like the place?”

Rachel gives him her ‘ _are you kidding me look_ ’. “I love it, thank you…”

“No thank you for agreeing to go out with me…I have to admit you make me feel very nervous…I don’t want to screw this up so I apologize in advance for my dumbness tonight, but I’m really nervous”

Rachel lets out a playful laugh. “I don’t believe it…You? Nervous? I’m sure you’re used to go out with a lot of girls and some of them prettier than I could ever be…”

Rolling his eyes, a little less nervous now, he answers her questions, “First, you’re beautiful, really beautiful inside and out. In fact I can bet you’re the prettiest girl in this restaurant, and I’m not kidding. Second, I’m not lying I’m very nervous, didn’t you feel my sweaty hands? Yes, I had gone out with a couple girls, but I’ve never been this nervous.”

Rachel frowns, “A couple? I think there’s a long list somewhere in the internet”

Wesley laughs, “Oh! so you googled me!”

Rachel looks down at the lines on the wooden table, ashamed, “I was curious…”

“Well, all the things that the media or the internet say about me are not 100% true. Hollywood is like that, if I go out with a friend I’m immediately dating her, and some of the actress that appear in that long list you probably found are mainly my friends…”

Rachel smiles slightly, “Really?”  Hope laced in her voice. ** **  
****

“Some of them…maybe three or four were my girlfriends, but they are not part of my life anymore…”

Rachel smiles more confident, she liked to know he was not the heartthrob the internet says he is. “Please, don’t believe all they say about me…I’m not that guy.” Wesley adds.

Rachel nods, “I know…”

Wes raises an eyebrow, “You do?”

“Yes, If not I wouldn’t be here…”

Wesley lets out a big bright smile and trying to seize the moment, he asks, “Would you dance with me?”

Rachel looks around confused. There’s music coming from a string ensemble, but there’s no dance-floor. “But there’s no dance floor…” she speaks her thoughts out loud.

Wesley stands up, “So?” and extends his hand for Rachel to grab it. The brunette smiles and grabs her date’s hand.

The two stars dance in the middle of the restaurant with prying eyes staring at them. Rachel can see the number of upper class women who are leaning over to their friends or their husbands whispering and pointing at them. The brunette turns her gaze from them back to the brown haired man who hasn’t taken his eyes off her. Looking into his baby blues the rest of the world melts around them and Rachel can’t help but snuggle closer into him laying her head on his shoulder. She feels an odd sense of comfort being wrapped up in his arms like they were a couple who have been together for years, versus being on their first date. The melodies coming from the string instruments die down and the song comes to an end Rachel is shocked to see the people around them sitting in their seats wearing smiles and clapping loudly at their impromptu slow dancing. Wesley smiles and raises his hand to thank for the sudden ovation. Rachel blushes and lets out a coy smile. Wesley taps on Rachel’s elbow when he sees their waiter headed their way with a tray of what looks to be their food. Once again Wesley pulls the brunette’s chair out for her and helps her scoot closer. Rachel reaches for her napkin to set it back on her lap when she notices Wesley turn out of the corner of her eye. She turns to look at him, but by the time she does he is facing her again with a single flower in his hand. With his free hand he tucks a lock of brown hair that has escaped from behind her ear then places the flower there.

“How did you do that? Where did you get the flower from?” Rachel questions him.

He smiles his crooked smile, “I have my ways,” sending her a quick wink.

Rachel laughs at his cuteness, “You took it off the table behind us didn’t you?”  

He lets out a long sigh, hanging his head then looking back up to her. “I’ve been caught red handed.”

Rachel touches the flower that is placed behind her ear and bites her bottom lip, looking up to the charming man hovering above her. “Stealing? So you mean to tell me you’re not all good?” She teases in an accusing tone, playing with him.

Wesley looks over her shoulder to the table he stole the flower from and then back to her, “Does it make me bad if I took it without asking, but I left a twenty dollar bill on the table?”

Rachel busts out laughing waving her hand in front of her while the other lands on her chest feeling like it might burst at any moment,”I-I’m sorry. I’m not laughing at you I swear.” The brunette takes a few more deep breaths and wipes the tears that escape her eye from laughing so hard. Clearing her throat she continues, “I’m sorry that was just so cute…” She trails off, looking back down at the table trying to compose her thoughts. Looking back up through her lashes to the man next to her she softly says, “It’s just every time I think to myself this man can’t get any more perfect, you go do something like that and prove me wrong.” This time it is Wesley’s turn to blush. He lifts his hand and runs the pad of his thumb over her cheek before silently withdrawing and turning back to his seat just in time for the waiter to arrive with their food.

Dinner flows smoothly and they both end up having a great time. After stuffing their bellies with more food than they thought they could hold the both throw in their napkins. They talk over one more glass of wine about anything and everything not related to the show. Wesley had told her he wanted to get to know the real her and what her real story was, not the one their television show made up for her. Taking their last sips and setting their wine glasses down, Wesley pays the bill and then stands up and reaches out for Rachel’s hand. Lacing their fingers together they make their way towards the exit feeling a mixture of emotions. They were both on cloud nine for how much of an amazing time they had, how easy it felt to be with the other, but they also felt a little pang in their chest knowing their night together was coming to an end. ** **  
****

When they drive back to Rachel’s apartment Wesley puts his Audi in park and hurries to turn off the engine, get out and run over to the passenger door to opens Rachel’s door for her. They make their way to stand by the front-step of the building, Rachel turns and ask, “Do you wanna come in?” Wesley shakes his head smiling. Rachel frowns confused, she thought they had had a great time so she doesn’t understand why he doesn’t want to come in. “Why not?”

Wesley grabs her hand, “Because I don’t want to ruin our first date…I won’t make all the mistakes people do in first dates…”

Rachel smiles, “You won’t?”

“Yeah, I won’t come in and certainly I won’t kiss you though I’m dying to do it, but I won’t…”

Rachel raises an eyebrow, “Really?”

“Yeah, but your lips are not safe on our second date”

Rachel laughs, “Second date? So that means you wanna go out again?”

Wesley’s smile falls and in a disappointed tone he backtracks, “Oh! You don’t? I’m sorry I just assumed that–I thought we had a good time and you. I’m so– **“**

Rachel raises her hand to silence him, “Yes! I wanna have a second date and hopefully a third, fourth, fifth and so many more…” Wesley smiles and he has to use all the willpower he has to not close the small distance between them and kiss her.

Rachel, noticing Wesley struggling, comes closer and says, “You know? I like that you don’t want to make all the typical first date mistakes, but the fact that you don’t want to make them doesn’t mean I can’t…” Wesley doesn’t even have time to process the brunette’s words because last thing he knows he’s touching heaven with her lips against his. When they split Rachel winks and turns around to enter the building leaving a very excited and shocked Wesley outside. When Wesley turns around to climb into his car he makes a small jump and a fist pump into the air. At that moment he believes he must be the happiest guy in the planet.

Kurt and Blaine are driving through the streets of Brooklyn to reach their Valentine’s Day date destination. The weather is cold like any February evening in the big old city and the air is icy. The rear car windows are slightly marred by the warm breaths of the two men sitting in the front seats who, despite of having the heating on are still freezing. When they stop at a red light, Kurt exhales and a puff of warm air tarnishes the front glass. “I can’t believe you’ve rented a car.”

Blaine laughs a little and without taking his eyes off the road, he replies. “The weather is still cold. I didn’t want us to go out there and freeze ourselves to death while waiting for a cab. You know sometimes it’s impossible to get a car in this city especially in days like today”

Kurt smiles his kind smile, “Thanks, that’s sweet. I really appreciate the car especially the heating because you’re right, it’s freezing outside…But…Ummm…Are you going to tell me where we’re going?”

Blaine shakes his head with an excited smile. “No, I already told you it’s a surprise…” Kurt rolls his eyes and looks back to the streets trying to guess for the millionth time where they might be going.

When they reach the Queens Midtown Expy Kurt faces his fiance and questions him, “Wait! Are we going to the main city?” Blaine doesn’t reply, instead he turns the car to the left to take the I-495 W to Manhattan.

“So no Brooklyn or Long Island?” Kurt is dying to get a hint from Blaine at this point.

Shaking his head and looking in the rear-view mirror to make sure he has free turning, Blaine adds, “No Brooklyn or Long Island…"

Kurt gets a little excited because he knows the places at the main city are more romantic and probably fancier. He tries not to show this new excitement because he’s still trying to get a scoop into Blaine’s plans, “Ummm, could you at least give me a clue?”

“Oh…I don’t know…I’ll have to think about that for a while…”Blaine teases his fiance, keeping him on his toes. Kurt chuckles as they drive into the midtown tunnel.

After some minutes, when the boys emerge from the toll road, Kurt demands, “Okay! I can’t wait any longer! I let you think all the way up here…I want my clue!”

Blaine laughs. “I love you”

Kurt frowns and exclaims, “That’s not a clue! That’s a matter of fact and I want a real clue like a street, or a place, or something! You can’t leave me like this!”

Taking full advantage of the red light in front of them Blaine quickly turns to look at his love and shakes his head smiling warmly. “Yes, that was not a clue, and I’m glad you know that’s a matter of fact, but I’m sorry…I won’t tell you anything…Just be patient.”

The blue-eyed man rolls his eyes at his fiance and turns around to look back to the window. They have been together long enough for Blaine to know patience is not one of his strong suits. He hates not to know where they are going, so unable to hide his discomfort he explodes, “You, better than anyone know, I hate surprises and I’m very good at figuring out what you’re planning ahead, but this time it was different! You did a great job hiding everything from me and I hate that! I even told Elliott that I believed you were mastering the skill of secrecy, but now I’m sure…You’ve become the master of secrecy and I’m not sure of being thrilled about that!”

Blaine bursts out laughing. “Coming from you I’ll take that as the biggest compliment ever! And although I know you apparently hate surprises I also know you secretly love them, so it’s good to know that I’m…What did you say? Oh yeah, ‘ _mastering the skill of secrecy_ ’, because I love surprising you…But you’re a very hard man to surprise. I think it has something to do with the fact that you’re like the smartest man in the planet so hiding things from you is not an easy task.”

Kurt gives the man he loves a soft smile as a thank you for the sudden compliment, but still unwilling to give up on the task he had in hand, he asks, “Central Park?” Blaine shakes his head and Kurt continues. He is determined to find out where they are going. “Ummm let’s think…You’re always the spectacular kind of guy, so maybe you’re planning something big…Ummm…A dinner date on the Empire State observatory deck?”

Blaine laughs again, “No, stop trying to guess Kurt. We will be there soon…I promise” Kurt pouts and using his secret weapon, he turns around to look at his fiance and gives him his best portrayal of a very sad and pleading man. Blaine knowing what his fiance is doing shoots him down by saying, “I’m not playing that game Kurt…I know what you’re trying to do, so don’t expect me turn around and look at that feigned sad expression. That may work on any other date, but not today…I want this to be special, so be good.” The blue-eyed man snorts and crosses his arms in front of him. He’s running out of weapons.

When the car turns in the Madison Avenue Kurt’s eyes open quickly in excitement, his mind is suddenly putting some of the pieces together so he exclaims, “Oh! I know where we’re going!” ** **  
****

Blaine’s smile falls and he asks, “You do?”

Kurt is so happy he is nearly vibrating out of his seat, “Of course I do!  Bryant Park!” Blaine fakes a disappointed look and Kurt exclaims, “I knew it! You talked to Lindy about getting the whole thing set up! Of course you were planning this big fancy picnic in the middle of the park! How come I didn’t think of that before? You know I love that park!” Blaine smiles wickedly and knowing his fiance couldn’t be more wrong he keeps driving straight. Kurt frowns confused, “Blaine? Ummm…The-the Park is over there” Kurt says pointing to the street that they just passed.

“I know that…And I told you to stop trying to guess, of course we’re not going to the park…” Kurt pouts again and feeling completely defeated exhales and sinks into his seat, resigned to not being able to guess where they are going until they actually get to the place.

The hazel-eyed man turns the car on West 44th street and Kurt looks around confused, “Wait! Wait! Wait! Are we going to see a play? I thought we were going out for dinner. I didn’t eat all day…” Blaine just smiles and parks the car in front of the Saint James Theater.

“Ready?” Blaine asks as soon as he turns off the engine.

Kurt doesn’t reply he’s looking around still trying to guess what are they doing there. “You didn’t answer my first question…Are we going to see a play?” ** **  
****

Blaine smiles warmly and shakes his head, “No, we are not…Are you ready?”

“I guess I am, but what are we doing here?” Kurt’s voice almost sounds a little disappointed. He is ready to know his surprise already. ** **  
****

Blaine grabs Kurt’s hand and kisses his knuckles, “You’ll see…”

They get out of the car and Blaine gives the car keys to a man in a yellow coat who’s waiting there with a huge sign of Astor Parking LLC. Kurt looks around trying to spot an over the top restaurant, but nothing looks fancy-Blaine-style enough for him. “Ummm…Blaine?”

Blaine turns around and looks back at his fiance, “Yes?”

Kurt frowns and still looking around he adds, “Ummm don’t get me wrong. I love some of the mystery surrounding this date, but I’m seriously not getting what are we doing here…You know I don’t like the restaurants around here, and I don’t believe you want us to go to the McDonald’s around the corner and if that’s your big plan for Valentine’s Day, then I’ll have to–”

Blaine grabs his fiance’s hand and silences him with a sweet kiss. “That’s better…Now can you just please stop complaining and trying to guess. Just close your eyes okay?” Blaine asks. Kurt is about to protest, but before he can say another word Blaine begins to plead, “Please? For me?”

“Okay fine! I’ll close my eyes, but I’m seriously not getting what we’re doing here if we aren’t actually going to see a play. I mean, I’ve heard there’s a reprise of Annie,  so maybe we should just go and see that” The impatient man says with a hopeful tone. ** **  
****

Blaine laughs and whispers, “Shhh…Patience my love…You’ll understand everything in a minute.”

Kurt closes his eyes and holds Blaine’s hand for support. “Patience? Tell that to a man who hasn’t spent more than a week trying to figure out your plans!”

The couple walks hand in hand as Blaine guides Kurt along the sidewalk, “If you weren’t that curious you’d be enjoying this surprise.”

“I’m enjoying it, you know I am, but can’t betray my curious nature…can I at least know if we are going to a theater?” A smile appears on Kurt’s face.

Blaine smiles and whispers into his ear, “Yes, we are…now let me help you okay? And…No peeking! I’m watching you, mister!” Kurt nods and a smile escapes from his lips. As much as he’s trying, at this point, he cannot keep hiding his excitement. It’s Valentine’s Day and he’s with the man he loves, so he’s willing to enjoy every single moment.

The couple enters the place, the whole time the hazel-eyed boy keeps warning his fiance about the stairs they have to climb up and down in order to get to the _‘romantic spot’_ as he has been calling it. Kurt keeps pleading “Can I open my eyes?” Smiling, Blaine doesn’t budge as he gives his fiance the same response, “No yet.” Blaine guides Kurt through the orchestra section and before they begin to walk down the stairs Kurt stops. “Wait…Are we already inside? ** **  
****

“Yeah…why?”

Kurt raises his hand and pointing towards his ear he adds, “There’s no noise…Are we the first ones to arrive?”

Blaine smiles a knowing smile, “Yeah, pretty much, but keep walking we still have to go down some stairs…”

When they reach the stage Blaine indicates with his hand to a string quartet to begin playing while he whispers into Kurt’s ear, “I hope you like what I’ve prepared for you…Open your eyes” The music starts and Kurt very slowly opens his eyes and looks around surprised. He’s standing on a Broadway theater in front of him there’s a table set for two with just a single spotlight illuminating it from above. Kurt turns around and admires the place. He knows the theater, it’s the same in which Rachel debuted as a Broadway star. The stately three-story rows of seats look breathtakingly beautiful with just the dim light from the stage illuminating them. The blue-eyed guy turns to face his man, he’s smiling widely and his eyes are glowing like the first time they met. “Do you like it?” Blaine asks nervously. Kurt nods unable to find words, he’s speechless. He doesn’t like it, he loves it. Blaine pulls one of the chairs and lets Kurt to take a seat. The blue-eyed man keeps looking at the table and the surroundings, some tears well up in his eyes. He looks at the man who’s making his way to the chair in front of him and a wave of happiness strikes him. He feels so lucky to have such a great man as a partner and friend. Blaine takes a seat in front of him and notices the look in his fiance’s face, “Are you alright?”

Kurt stutters, trying to find the right words to express his joy .“Yeah…It’s just that-that…This is beautiful Blaine…Thank you! I’m glad I didn’t figure this out. I never ever expected any of this…You’re amazing!”

Blaine smiles warmly and grabs Kurt’s hand tightly. “I’m glad you liked it. I told you I wanted it to be special…you deserve special” ** **  
****

Kurt stares at his lover with teary eyes and mouths a “ _Thank you_.”

The hazel-eyed boy asks, “Thirsty?” Kurt gives his fiance a small nod and Blaine raises his hand to call someone. A waiter enters the stage carrying a tray with what seems to be a very expensive bottle of champagne.

Kurt laughs a little and says, “I knew McDonalds was not an option for you…”

Blaine laughs too while the waiter finishes pouring two glasses of the bubbly drink and walks away. Kurt grabs his glass and before Blaine can say anything, he interrupts, “I wanna propose a toast…To us!” Blaine grabs his glass and clicking it with Kurt’s he toasts, “To us!

“How did you? How did you…” Kurt tries to ask.

Blaine, guessing what his love wanted to say interjects, “How did I pull this together?” Kurt moves his head up and down while taking a small sip of the delicious drink. Blaine continues, “Well as you already know because you were spying on me, I talked to Lindy because when we were in Vocals 101. She mentioned she was an extra in this new show that’s now replacing Funny Girl and well…Originally I wanted to take you to the Highline, but the weather is not helping so I changed my mind and I thought about taking you to a restaurant. But, I wanted it to be special so I thought about this…And well…I asked her if I could meet her boss, she said yes and gave me his number. I talked to him and it turned out that he’s a romantic man and he thought this idea was super cheesy, and just like that he borrowed us the theater for a few hours…”

Kurt asks, “Just like that?”

“Yeah…Well maybe I paid a little something, but nothing over the top I promise.”

Kurt laughs, “Over the top or not this is amazing. Thank you…”  Blaine smiles warmly and leans over to quickly kiss his fiance. When he’s pulling back the blue-eyed man grabs him from the tie to stop him and whispers, “I love you.” The dark-haired man smiles and whispers back, “And I love you too.” While the waiter enters the stage again bringing the food.

The two boys talk and catch up on each others daily lives while enjoying the three course meal the private chef has prepared for them. Blaine takes the last bite of cheesecake and puts down his fork, he asks. “So…Are you telling me what’s my surprise?”

Kurt laughs. His time has finally come. “Oh right! Yeah, I almost forgot!” He takes a red envelope from his coat and hands him to his fiance. Blaine frowns and opens the envelope. Inside there’s a plain Valentine’s Day card, he opens it and reads, “Blaine: Happy Valentines! I love you! Kurt.”

Blaine looks up from the card and says, slightly disappointed, “Was this the surprise you were talking about?”

Kurt suppresses a smile and just nods grabbing his glass and taking a sip. Now is his time for a little revenge in the surprise sector. “Yeah, sort off…I had other plans, but with the school, the work at the diner, and Vogue I was a little busy…Hope you don’t mind.”

Blaine is quick to muster up a smile trying to hide his disappointment, “Of course I don’t mind, for me the perfect Valentine’s gift is being able to call you mine. I don’t need anything else.”

Kurt smiles slightly trying not to give much away, “You are so right, I love you and you love me. That’s all we really need.”

Blaine stands up from his seat and extends his hand towards his man, “May I have this dance?”

Kurt blinks rapidly. For a moment, he is being transported back in time. The images of that prom where he was crowned prom Queen are replaying in his mind and without realizing it he repeats what he said all those years ago, “Yes, yes…you may…” Blaine laughs a little and escorts Kurt to the middle of the stage. Kurt places one hand on Blaine’s shoulder and the other in his left hand. They start to make small steps dancing with the music playing, as Kurt looks around, the lighting in the room changes. The spotlight on the stage disappears and is replaced with a hazy dim red light that follows them as they glide across the stage. Kurt looks around and notices more red lights that has taken shape reflecting strange patterns on the floor and back wall. Laughing a little he adds, “Now that’s cheesy” darting his eyes to the heart patterns that are now covering the stage.

Blaine smiles and kissing Kurt’s neck he whispers, “A little...” The two boys get lost in the feeling of the others embrace as they lean farther into each other letting the melody of the music invade their senses and the rest of the world around them washes away as if they were the only ones left. The string quartet switches from one song to another a couple times but the two men are never fazed, they’re only listening to the sound of their lover’s breath hitting their neck as if it was a melody of its own.

When the third song ends Kurt lifts his head from his fiance’s shoulder and whispering into his ear he confesses, “I may have lied about your surprise…”

“You did?” Blaine perks up.

Kurt smiles and kissing Blaine’s cheek he slyly continues, “I don’t know…let’s go home so you can find out” Blaine smiles excited. He knows that when Kurt uses that tone in his voice something good is about to happen. “Okay…”

Kurt smiles. “But before we go I want to thank you again for this. I love every bit of it! I love you so much!”

Blaine smiles sweetly, “You’re welcome and I love you too… so much” Kurt laughs and leans over to kiss his fiance deeply. When they split, both are out of breath, the kiss was intense and they can’t deny that the atmosphere just changed. “Let’s go home…” Blaine says still trying to recover the missing air in his lungs.

Kurt still blushed says, “Yeah…let’s go home”

Santana stands outside waiting for her girlfriend to come down the steps, out of their apartment building and into the waiting cab that is parked behind her. The cab showed up about ten minutes ago and Brittany still hasn’t come down stairs. It wasn’t a problem for the Latina, she’s never had a problem waiting for her girlfriend and if she were being honest she would wait forever for her if she had to, because the blonde was always worth it. The cab driver apparently didn’t have the same understanding and patience. “Come on! Are you getting in on or what!?” The old man in the driver’s seat yells out the window.

Causing the Latina’s blood to boil, “Oh shut up your getting paid!” She leans down to the passenger window and yells back to him. “We will leave whenever she is ready, now stop your bitching.” Santana stands up and straightens her back looking up towards their apartment building door.

Just then, she sees a wave of blonde flash by the window of the door and the front door swings open. Brittany steps over the apartment buildings threshold, closing the door behind her. She pulls her purse strap up her right shoulder and turns to see a leering brunette staring at her with lustful eyes. Blushing, Brittany makes her way down the buildings front steps and stops about a foot in front of her.

“What?” The blonde asks quietly when Santana still hasn’t said a word, but continues staring at her.

Letting a ‘ _not at all ashamed for leering_ ’ smile spread across her lips the brunette shakes her head. “Nothing, it’s just…Just that you look so beautiful.” Brittany bites her bottom lip trying to contain her face-splitting smile. “That’s not the outfit I handed to you…”

The blondes smile falls, “Oh, I-I can go change, I just-”

“No!” Santana reaches out and laces her arms around the dancer’s waist. “No, don’t change. Brittany you look stunning! I don’t know how you manage to make something so simple look so amazing. You know that shirt is actually my favorite because it–”

“–Brings out my eyes.” Brittany cuts her off and finishes her sentence. “I know. That’s why I wore it.”

Santana steps back and takes another long look at the woman she is lucky enough to call hers. Her outfit is simple, she’s wearing a pair of black Keds with white laces and a pair of form fitting blue jeans that hugged her body in all the right places. The Latina let her eyes travel up a little further to see the ultramarine blue polo shirt her girlfriend is wearing that stopped right above the waist of her jeans. Every time she moved Santana could see the muscle in her stomach ripple; causing a heat to spread over her body. This shirt was originally her favorite of Brittany’s because the color brought out the blue of the blondes’ eyes perfectly, but now she has found another reason. She looks to the blonde’s face quickly knowing if she kept admiring her girlfriend’s body they would never make it to the surprise destination she had planned and they would be backtracking to their apartment. Although now that she was looking into those piercing blue eyes she didn’t think this would help out her situation either. She can’t help it, her girlfriend is all around beautiful. She lets her eyes scan her lovers face for a second more, taking in the light freckles that are scattered over the bridge of her nose. The way her thin pink lips curved into the cutest smile she has ever seen, her blonde hair pulled back into a messy ponytail that sits high up on her head and her long bangs that lay just above her eyes swept to the right. Unable to resist the urge Santana takes a step forward and presses a chaste kiss to pink lips. It’s like she’s stuck in a haze, a haze that only a certain blonde can manage to pull her into.

She is so lost and wrapped up in everything’s Brittany that her plans for Valentine’s Day are being threatened to be relocated. That is, until she hears the sound of the cab driver grumbling and saying incoherent words under his breath, but Santana manages to hear at least one of them, “ _dykes."_

Santana quickly steps out of her girlfriend’s embrace and whips her head around to look at the driver through the cab window. With her eyebrows scrunched in rage she leans down, “Excuse me!? If you have something to say, please say it out loud.” Santana pauses and holds her hands out waiting for him to elaborate. When she is met with no response she presses her lips together in a tight line and nods her head, “That’s what I thought. No eres más que una perra celosa…(translation: You’re just a jealous bitch)” The bald overweight man sits there looking at the Latina with wide eyes as she rants off and swears in Spanish.

It isn’t until she feels the soft skin from pale hands press to her lower back that Santana feels the anger escape her body. Shooting daggers with her eyes back to the drive one last time, “You are so lucky it’s Valentines Day, and I refuse to let you ruin this day for us!” She leans through the passenger window smirking at the way the overweight man cringes away from her in fear. She slips him a piece of paper that had their destination on it and giving him a pointed look she says, “It’s a surprise, so please don’t screw it up! ” He nods his head quickly and she pulls back from the window. Her hard expression immediately turns into a sweet smile when she looks up to her eagerly waiting girlfriend, “Are you ready for your surprise?” Blue eyes sparkle and the blonde nods furiously. Santana can’t help but smile at her adorable girlfriend again before reaching over and opening the back door of the cab letting the blonde slide in first with her following right after; closing the door once she is seated next to her love.

The cab pulls away from the curb and out into traffic, with the driver not saying a word for the rest of the way. The blonde snuggles in close to the Latina as Santana wraps her arms around her kissing the top of her head when she leans it on her shoulder. “So, are you going to tell me where we are going yet?” The blonde whispers so only the woman next to her can hear.

Chuckling, Santana runs her hands up and down Brittany’s arms, “Britt, it won’t be much longer and we will be there.”

The cab ride doesn’t take too long and before Santana knows it they are pulling up to the drop off area near the front entrance. Brittany still hasn’t noticed where they are yet, due to the fact she is in the middle of an elaborate story about something Lord Tubbington got into the day before. The Latina reaches for the handle to the cab door and popping the door open she climbs out and turns to lend a hand to her girlfriend, helping her out as well.

Brittany looks up once she is out of the cab and sees the sign that reads _‘Disneyland’_ and her jaw drops. Turning back to her girlfriend with wide eyes she stands in shock for a split second before running to Santana and throwing her arms around the shorter girl’s shoulders. “San! We’re at Disneyland!”  

The brunette chuckles and returns the hug, “I know Britt, I’m the one who planned it. This is your Valentine’s Day surprise!” Brittany bounces with excitement and presses and enthusiastic kiss to her girlfriend’s cheek. This is what Santana lives for, seeing the excitement in her lover’s eyes and her lips curl up so high they reach her blushing cheeks. Santana reaches over and grabs the hem of her girlfriend’s polo shirt and pulls her closer, closing the distance between them. Letting her hand slip under the blue fabric the Latina runs her hand over tight abs causing the blonde to giggle. Still laughing slightly Brittany leans in and places a lingering kiss to plump lips capturing her lovers bottom lip. As the brunette smiles into the kiss she hears the cab driver scoff out loud from within the yellow cab behind them. Santana disappointingly drops her hand from inside her lover’s shirt and as their lips separate she takes a deep breath, not wanting to lose her cool in front of her girlfriend, who is obviously in such a great mood. Looking over the blonde’s shoulder she sees the guy in the Mickey Mouse costume, “Hey Britt, look who it is.” pointing in the direction of the Disney character. The blue-eyed woman turns in Santana’s embrace and sees Mickey Mouse walking around greeting the amusement park guests.

With a loud gasp Brittany turns back to face the brunette, “Oh! San, can we go over there and say hi, please?!”

Santana smiles at her girlfriend’s childlike reaction. “Of course B, you go on over there I just got to pay the cab fare and I’ll be right over to say hi, too.” Brittany jumps up and down a couple times and then runs off in the direction of Mickey Mouse while yelling over her shoulder, “Okay, meet you over there!”

Santana stands there for a moment and watches her girlfriend talking animatedly to the Disney worker dressed in the Mickey’s costume with a smile on her face. Running her hands through long raven locks she turns back to the cab. She leans down to look through the cab window, “How much?” she cuts short.

“$40”

Santana nods and pulls a wad of cash from her bra, counting out the money she needs. She hands the driver the money she owes for their cab fare. He reaches across the center console to grab it, when his hand makes contact with the wad of money Santana doesn’t let go making him look up to her and holding her stare, “Listen, I know you’re probably upset about the fact you’re an overweight, greasy, uneducated cab driver who most likely got his GED at 40, still lives in his mommy’s basement and only has orgasms when tapping your foot to free internet porn; but the next time you decide to cough out some derogatory remark to people you know nothing about I will call and get you fired from the job that pays for the hundreds of big, fat, meaty hamburgers you must eat to keep that obese corpulent figure you got going on. Got it?” The man just swallows thickly and nods. Santana lets go of the money and steps back with a satisfied smirk.

Santana makes her way over to the fair skinned woman. When Brittany spots her the brunette can hear the blonde saying to the Disney character, “Oh, that’s my girlfriend right there. She brought us here for Valentine’s Day.” The Mickey character nods looking like he was happy to hear what Brittany was telling him, but Santana wonders if the person behind the mask was truly interested, or if it was just the illusion of the smile the mask they wore permanently had. ** **  
****

After being introduced to the Mickey character, and taking so many pictures Santana thinks she may have to delete some photos from her phone to make room for all the others they would be taking the rest of their night there. The lovebirds make their way through the front gate. Stopping once they made it through, Santana laces her fingers with the blonde’s and turning her head, asks, “Are you hungry? They have this really nice restaurant here that I heard has a special Valentine’s menu. I’m not sure what that means, but sounds romantic right?” Brittany’s head is already turned looking the brunette over missing half the words she said. Brittany can’t help but get distracted by her girlfriend’s beauty. The sun is slowly setting behind them and it’s rays are hitting Santana’s caramel skin making it look like it is glowing. Her long raven hair that she wears down in waves that stop near her lower back always take her breath away. The blonde scans her leering eyes over her lover’s outfit of choice and internally chuckles at the fact that her girlfriend changed her shoes after Brittany’s comment about always wearing heels; she is now wearing a pair of Brittany’s black converse. Letting her eyes travel back up to Santana’s face she can see plump lips moving, but can’t register what the other woman is saying.

Shaking her head and bringing her mind back in focus she notices Santana saying her name, “I’m sorry what? ** **  
****

Santana can’t help but smile at the blonde, if it were someone else she would of probably bit their head off and been really pissed for having to repeat herself, but there was always something about Brittany that she found captivating and adorable and she could never really be mad at her. “I was just asking if you were hungry babe.”

“Oh yes! I’m starving!” Brittany says enthusiastically like she hasn’t eaten in a year. All Santana can do is smile and shake her head. The girls tug on the their laced fingers and head in the direction of the restaurant Santana was talking about. They casually chat about the trip they took when they were kids to Disneyworld in Florida with Santana’s family and how different Disneyland was from there. ** **  
****

Enjoying a delicious dinner at Blue Bayou where Brittany ordered the bayou surf & turf and Santana had the cajun-spiced salmon, the two women talk about the places they want to see next. “Britt, I don’t care where we stop next, it’s whatever you wanna do, as long as we are ready for your surprise by 8pm and it’s only like 5:30pm now so we have plenty of time to make a couple stops.” After finishing up their drinks and deciding to skip dessert Brittany and Santana make their way out of the restaurant. “Let’s stop over there and grab one of those maps.” Santana points to her right where a stand of folded paper maps sit. Making their way over there she grabs one, opening it up to see what direction they need to head in to make it to her surprise end destination. “I think we can start with the Critter Section…Do you wanna see some pirates?” Brittany nods, excited, and grabbing her girlfriend’s hand they walk away to start having their night of fun.

The girls reach the end of Frontierland and step into Fantasyland. As soon as the blonde spots the first attraction there she starts to exclaim, excited, “Look San!! Look at those teacups!! Can we go there? Please? Please? Please?”

Santana looks at the map in her hands and reads the name of the attraction “Mad Tea Party” And that’s exactly what comes into her mind, _‘this is madness’_ but with one look into her girlfriend’s excited expressions she changes her mind. “Sure Britt! That looks like fun I always dreamed about spinning around in an empty cup” ** **  
****

Brittany smiles broadly and already running she exclaims, “Me too!”

After spinning in the cups for like ten minutes the girls climb out of the ride and Brittany immediately points to their next stop, “Now let’s go there!” Santana looks up and tries to spot the attraction the blonde is suggesting.

“Where?” The Latina asks.

“There!” Brittany says pointing into the map ** **  
****

Santana reads and says, “But It’s Small World…What do we do there exactly Britt-Britt?”

Brittany shrugs, “I don’t know, but it looks like fun!”

Santana laughs and follows her girlfriend who’s already five steps ahead of her. When they reach the attraction Santana says, “So, basically we just ride on this boat for who knows how long while a bunch of animated dolls sing about world peace?”

Brittany bounces up and down, “Yes! Isn’t that fun?”

Santana smiles as they climb into the pink boat with the blonde already humming the melody of the Small World’s song. Santana sighs and mutters under her breath, “Oh God! That song’s going to stay in my head for days”

Brittany turns around. “Did you say something?”

Santana shakes her head and kissing her girlfriend’s cheek she adds, “Nothing…Just that I love you

After the long experience on the ride to ‘ _It’s a Small World_ ’ the two women find an empty spot on top of a grassy hill that sits behind the forecourt to Sleeping Beauty’s castle. Away from the hundreds of bodies lined up in front of the bridge looking at the illuminated castle. The clock is almost ticking 8pm so Santana lays down a small plush blanket that she bought at a souvenir shop. She originally wanted to buy the simple Mickey’s black and white blanket, but after watching Brittany getting excited with the Disney princesses one she decided to buy the pink blanket with all the Disney Princesses printed on it. The Latina sits down first leaning onto her right elbow and pats the empty spot next to her encouraging her girlfriend to join her. With a wide smile, that hasn’t left her face since they showed up, Brittany bends to sit down and scoots as close as she can to the brown-eyed woman. “Happy Valentine’s Day San, thank you for bringing me here. It’s been the best Valentine’s ever!”

Santana just smiles at her lover, “Happy Valentine’s day too, B.” They both lay back on their elbows to look out in the distance at Sleeping Beauty’s castle. It is lit up with lights of every color. While pink and red hearts are being projected on the sides of it.

“So, what are we doing here, other than staring at Aurora’s beautiful castle, do you think she’s in there?” The dancer asks with a serious face.

Santana looks to the blonde out of the corner of her eyes with a small smile playing at her lips. “Just wait a second Britt and you’ll see why I brought you here.” As soon as the words left Santana’s lips the night sky light up with colorful fireworks creating a magical atmosphere.

“Oh my gosh! Look San, it’s so beautiful!” Brittany points out looking up to the sky as all the fireworks burst around the castle.

“Yes it is…” Santana whispers softly, her eyes never leaving Brittany’s face.

The blonde can feel her girlfriend’s eyes on her and she turns with a shy smile. Sparkling blue eyes meet warm brown’s. With her voice dropping an octave lower and fill with a husk she didn’t know she possessed Brittany bites her bottom lip and says, “You are the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”

Santana’s eyes immediately grew a shade darker and she slowly leans in and presses a lingering kiss to pink lips. Only pulling back an inch the brunette says, “God, I love you.

A laugh escapes from Brittany’s lips, “You’ve said that a couple times tonight.” Brittany giggles, “But, I love you too.” The blonde leans in again capturing plump lips with her own. She inhales the other woman’s scent and deepening the kiss she brings her hand up to cup a tan cheek drawing Santana in closer as fireworks play out above them.

Rachel steps out of the elevator and a  soft strumming of a guitar can be heard across the hall from Rachel’s apartment. She knows the song so while opening her door she starts to sing along. She’s in such a  great mood after all.

_(Rachel)…Settle down with me, cover me up cuddle me in. Lie down with me and hold me in your arms…_

Rachel leans up against the closed door to her apartment with a wide grin on her face. Tonight has been the most fun she has had in a while. She finally let herself relax and enjoy Wesley’s company and now after that kiss she felt like she is on cloud nine. She walks into her place and grabs one of the flowers that Wesley gave her. She smells the beautiful pink peony flower and lets herself fall back onto her couch.

_(Brittany and Santana)…Your heart’s against my chest, your lips pressed to my neck._

Brittany and Santana climb into a cab and cuddle up in each others embrace. The cab takes off and the two girls look out the back window to see the lit up castle in the distance. They both smile at the memories they created there. Looking back into each other’s eyes they lock lips, humming into the other’s mouth.

_(Artie)…I’m falling for your eyes, but they don’t know me yet and this feeling I’ll forget, I’m in love now…_

Artie is talking to the group of people around him when he feels a warm body sit in the open seat next to him. Looking to his right his eyes widen when he sees a familiar blonde now occupying the empty seat that, as far as he knew, was saved for Damien’s sister. He smiles surprised to discover that that girl is no other than Madison, the lovely girl who stole the spotlight during the auditions. He looks into those familiar beautiful blue eyes and a warm wave of a strange feeling embraces his heart. This girl is slowly stealing his free will.

_(Kurt and Blaine)…Kiss me like you wanna be loved, you wanna be loved, you wanna be loved..._

Kurt and Blaine pull their jackets tighter around their torso’s and then lean into each others embrace to keep warm as they exit the Broadway theater. Making their way back to the rental car, Blaine opens the passenger side letting Kurt slide in before closing it for him. The hazel-eyed man rounds the vehicle and climbs into the driver’s seat. Blaine starts the car and pulls out into the night time travel of New York City.

_(Rachel, Artie, Kurt, Blaine, Brittany and Santana)…Ohh…This feels like falling in love, falling in love, falling in love…_

Rachel stands up smiling from the couch and walks toward her room without being able to hide her happiness. Artie looks into Madison’s eyes and a sweet smile escapes from his lips. Brittany and Santana look at each other and for a moment it’s like if there was no one else around them. Blaine, being careful that there are no cars near them, quickly turns to his right and looks at his fiance who’s giving him his most beautiful smile. The six former Glee kids can’t hide how happy they are.  

_(Artie)…In the darkest night hour, in the darkest night hour..2_

Artie sits and quietly watches as Madison eases her way into the conversation as if she hasn’t missed a thing. The brunette man can’t help but think how beautiful she is, and how amazing her laugh sounds, and she leans back laughing and holding her stomach at something Michael has said.

_(Rachel)…I’ll search through the crowd for your face is all that I see, give me everything…_

Rachel makes her way to her bathroom and starts pulling out the necessary products she needs to remove her make-up. She look’s up into her vanity mirror and with a love struck smile she runs the pads of her fingers over her lips letting her mind slip back to the thoughts of how it felt to have her crush’s lips pressed against hers and how empowering she felt for being the one to initiate the kiss.

Out of the corner of her eye the brunette sees her phone screen lighting up signalling she received a text. With the same smile that hasn’t left her face she walks by and unlocks her phone.

_(Brittany, Santana, Kurt and Blaine)…Baby, love me lights out. Baby, love me lights out. You can turn my light out…I love you like XO, you love me like XO. You kill me boy XO, you love me like XO…_

Brittany leans her head on Santana’s chest, listening to the soft thuds of her lovers heart beat, while Santana traces soothing patterns along the small of her back. The cab passes through the city bringing the lover closer to their home.  

Blaine weaves through the city traffic with a new found determination to get home knowing there is a surprise waiting for him. Kurt leans over the console and rest one hand on his lovers thigh and leans up to kiss Blaine’s cheek. Blaine blushes and gives his man a sweet smile. Kurt smiles back and rests his head on the hazel-eyed man’s shoulder.

_(Rachel)…All that I see give me everything. Baby, love me lights out. Baby, love me lights out…_

By now Rachel’s cheeks were starting to hurt from how much she is smiling. Giddy with excitement when she sees Wes’ name on the phones screen, the T.V. star swipes across the screen and reads the message. A huge grin, crosses her face as soon as she read the words, “Thank you for tonight! It was the best night ever! XO” The brunette bites her lower lip as she quickly types out a reply

_(Rachel, Artie, Kurt, Blaine, Brittany and Santana)…Kiss me like you wanna be love me lights out, you wanna be love me lights out, you wanna be loved…_

Artie notices Madison’s drink is now down to the melted ice. He signals for the waitress and offers Madison a drink. She smiles a soft smile with sparkling eyes and nods in confirmation.

Brittany lifts her head from Santana’s chest and places soft kisses to the Latina’s neck as the city lights shine bright and dance across their shadowed figures.

The light in front of the Volvo turns red causing Blaine to slow the car down to a stop. Taking advantage of the free moment he has, he quickly looks down to where Kurt’s head is resting. With his index finger he guides Kurt’s head up from his shoulder and leans in stealing a kiss. Kurt breathes in deeply trying to deepen the kiss. The light turns green and Blaine reluctantly pulls away from his fiance and presses the gas.

Rachel reads the message again before tapping the send button, “Thank _YOU_ for tonight! And for being you…I loved every bit of it, especially the part where I broke your rules…”

_(Artie)…You can turn my light out…_

Once the waitress comes back with two fresh drinks and hands one to Artie and the other to Madison. Artie raises his glass to the blonde. She smiles softly and raises her glass, clinking it with Artie’s causing the ice to stir and hit the sides of their cups.

_(Kurt and Blaine)…This feels like falling in love me lights out, falling in love me lights out, we’re falling in love…_

Arriving back to their loft Blaine pulls the metal door open quickly anxious to see his surprise. He throws down his belongings and goes to search for any clues towards what Kurt’s surprise could be, but is quickly stopped by his enthusiastic lover who, uncharacteristically pushes him against the cold metal door while reaching down and pulling at Blaine’s tucked in shirt.  

_(Brittany and Santana)…You can turn my light out…_

Santana slides her house key into the bronze door knob slowly pushing the door open and letting Brittany step in first. Closing the door behind her she strips off her jacket and sets it on the table by the door and sets her keys next to it. She goes to walk farther into the house, but is stopped by the blonde pushing her up against the closed door and pulling her into a heated kiss.

_(Rachel)…Love me lights out…_

Setting her phone back down and continuing removing her make-up and getting ready for bed, Rachel knows for sure she will sleep peacefully tonight as she lays there reminiscing about her date with Wes.

_(Santana and Blaine)…In the darkest night hour, in the darkest night hour. I’ll search through the crowd your face is all that I see…give me everything…_

Kurt pulls at Blaine’s tie dragging him backwards towards their curtain that hides their bedroom. Stopping outside the room he lets go of Blaine and gives him a small head nod encouraging him to pull back the curtain. Blaine takes the hint and quickly pulls back the curtain and gasps. Laid out before him are dozens of lit candles that are scattered through the room and rose petals littering their shared bed. Kurt stands behind his lover with a wide smile, proud that his plan worked as he wanted and mentally reminding himself to thank Elliott for the great job he did setting it up while they were gone.

Brittany steps out of Santana’s embrace and pulls her hand toward the bedroom. She stops at the closed door and looks to Santana. Raising a questioning eyebrow Santana slowly opens the door and gasp at the sight of the dim lit room. On their bed is two sets of lingerie spread out and on Brittany’s night stand is a can of whipped cream and chocolate syrup. Feeling a heat spread over her body she looks over her shoulder seeing a smirking blonde.

_(Brittany and Kurt)…like you wanna be loved._

Kurt softly pushes Blaine farther into the room towards their bed. The back of Blaine’s knees hit the bed causing him to fall back on it. Brittany pushes Santana softly in the bedroom, the Latina’s eyes grow a shade darker as she watches Brittany move about the room with nothing but the moon light hitting her perfect figure.

Kurt turns around and walks back toward the curtain that hangs in front of their room to close it. Brittany turns around and grabs the doorknob of the girls’ room. Kurt and Brittany, with knowing smirks, close their respective bedroom’s doors as love fills the air.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	3. Trust

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on the Glee Fan Project...It was Valentine’s and love was definitely in the air! Mercedes and Sam enjoyed a friendly but not so friendly lunch together...what’s going on with these two anyways? Santana surprised Brittany by taking her to Disneyland while Rachel grew some confidence and kissed Wesley after their first date! You go girl! Blaine pulled some major strings and planned a table for two dinner on a Broadway theater for Kurt, and then he was kind of let down when Kurt gave him a simple card. Really Kurt? Artie got over his lonely anti-Valentine’s mood and hung out with some friends when a very special lady who caught his eye shows up...Could this be the start of something new? Finally, Brittany and Kurt surprised their lovers with their own Valentine's Day surprises at the end of the night...What happened behind those closed doors?.. And that’s what you missed on Glee!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s our third episode! Remember that each episode is set in a different month. Anyways as usual click at the top of this episode to go to our intro video and the Episode 3 playlist. For this episode we’re using a special cover of Nick Jonas’ Jealousy by Jireh. Remember that we wrote the characters singing these songs with their own vocal arrangements in mind that’s why some of these songs are covers and some are the originals. We hope you enjoy them!

[Intro vid](http://gleefanproject.tumblr.com/post/108264440773/previously-on-the-glee-fan-project-it-was)

[Episode 3 Playlist](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv_rvGfxbXKMRmUUn05RcfAybuNTTsFF_)

 

High school students litter the hallways of McKinley. A tall blonde man, strutting in a pair of black Dockers and a plaid button down shirt tucked into his pants, held by a black leather belt, weaves his way through the crowded hallways. Stopping outside of the choir room door, Sam takes a deep breath before twisting the door knob and stepping into the classroom filled with this year’s Glee Club kids. He walks straight over to the whiteboard and grabs a black dry erase marker writing ‘ _Trust_ ’ on the board. After putting the cap back on the marker and setting in on the boards metal shelf, Sam turns around to face his students. “This week your assignment is trust. These past few weeks you have been having this silly fights with each other, and in order to win Regionals, we all need to learn to trust in each other again. We need to know that no matter what, we will always be there for each other. So, your assignment is to team up with someone, but not your usual partners, and do a duet. Find any song about trust, whether it be good or bad, and sing about that. Everyone understand?”

The students that fill the chairs in front of him just stare blankly back at the blonde. The room remains silent until a brunette finally raises her hand. “Yes Marley?” Sam asks as he points to her.

“Umm, care to give us an example?” She challenges him in a shy tone.

Sam presses his lips together in thought before slowly giving the class a nod, “Yeah, sure.” The new teacher grabs his guitar and after tuning it with the right notes, he starts to sing.

_(Sam)…When you meet that certain someone you’ve been searchin’ hard to find. It’s a new love full of passion that can sometimes make you blind…_

Letting his fingers slide across the fretboard, Sam slowly walks back to the middle of the room strumming the notes.

_(Sam)…I don’t mind bein’ swept away if I know right from the start. So before we go much further, girl Can I trust you with my heart?…_

Trying to emphasize the fact that he chose a good _‘trusting’_ song he walks near Marley and sings to her while all the students move their heads rhythmically, following the melody of the song.

_(Sam)…In the time we’ve spent together I have learned to trust in you. So many things you’ve given before I even asked you to, but reality and romance are sometimes far apart so what I really need to know is…Can I trust you with my heart?…_

The blonde man closes his eyes as the lyrics to the song seem to touch home. Maybe this assignment wasn’t such a good idea after all.

_(Sam)…Can I cast my cares upon you? Can you stand a heavy load? Can I count on you to walk me down that long and winding road? If you promise me these simple things I can guaranty you can always count on me…_

With his eyes still closed, Sam can’t help but let his mind drift to a certain ex lover. Kitty is looking at him intently as if she knows what her teacher is trying to hide; what he’s really feeling with the song.

_(Sam)…Can I cast my cares upon you? Can you stand a heavy load? Can I count on you to walk me down that long and winding road?…_

He continues to sing as his voice wavers with the thick emotion that seems to be stuck in his throat. Fighting back tears and reminding himself he is standing in front of students and this song is just for teaching purposes and is not about him, he tries to smile and fake an emotionless expression.

_(Sam)…When two hearts solely surrender and are sworn to understand it completes a perfect union between a woman and a man…_

Sam continues to play the guitar as he leans into the notes he’s playing and sings the lyrics while looking to his students.

_(Sam)…So please don’t misunderstand me I don’t want to go too far without knowing just one answer…Can I trust you with my heart?…_

The new teacher strums out the last couple notes and softly sings the last lines of the song.

_(Sam)…Please, girl give me just one answer…Can I trust you with my heart?…_

Dropping his hands from the guitar, he softly sings the last word.

_(Sam)…Please…_

Sam stands there with a sad expression for a second before lifting the guitar over his head and setting it back next to the band. He walks the short distance to the piano and takes a seat on the bench that sits in front of it. “So, yeah, something like that.”

Kitty leans back in her chair and crosses her arms over her chest, squinting her eyes in thought. Not being able to bite her tongue any longer she sits up straight and says, “Okay, hold up, there is no way you can tell us that song was not totally about Mercedes…I thought you were trying to convince everyone you were over her…Secret’s out Mr. Evans! God! That still sounds so weird.” she rolls her eyes and cocks her head to the side waiting for Sam’s excuse.

Sucking his lips into his mouth as if he is trying to keep himself from saying something he shouldn’t the blonde teacher just goes with, “I’m going to play the fifth.”

The Glee students look from Sam to their classmates, all with confused faces. Ryder clears his throat and leans halfway out his seat to get closer to Sam he whispers, “Don’t you mean plead the fifth?”

Sam places his elbow on his knees and shrugs his shoulders, “Yeah, sure, that too.”

Rolling her eyes once more, Kitty mumbles to herself, “And this is the guy they left in charge of us…”

Kurt and Blaine walk hand and hand into the subway to go to the shops at Columbus Circle. They both finally have a day off to spend with each other and Kurt insisted on going shopping. Spring is coming and so are the new fashion trends and he can’t allow himself to be left behind; He insisted on adding some new clothes to both their closets. Blaine, who can’t resist his fiance’s ‘ _please_ ’ face, agreed almost immediately and got ready to go shopping. Once the two boys reach Kurt’s favorite place to shop, which is located on the other side of town, the blue-eyed man practically squeals at the sight of his favorite store and tugs on Blaine’s arm to dragging  him in the direction of J. Crew.

“I’m going to browse around.” Kurt tells Blaine, who nods and then breaks from his fiance’s arm to look around for himself. Blaine walks through the pathways of the store and picks up a beige Donegal cardigan along with a grey shawl collar fisherman’s sweater. Rounding a corner, he spots a chambray bowtie and a pair of vintage faded blue pants. Content with his selection, he makes his way into the dressing room. Blaine pulls his striped polo over his head, tossing it on the bench before sliding out of his yellow Dockers. Slipping into one of the sweaters and the pair of blue pants, he looks hopefully to the mirror. He’s sure that this outfit is going to look great. Kurt always tells him that he looks good in blue, because it makes his eyes change color and his body look great. But, when he looks in the mirror, _‘great’_ is not what he sees. He sees how the waistband of his pants digs into his still pushed out stomach and how the fat on the sides of his body practically spill out. He shakes his head in disgust. It seems to him that no matter how hard he tries, he just can’t shake those couple extra pounds he put on last year. Blaine stands there looking over his body in the mirror, pinching the fat on his stomach through his shirt and internally struggling with himself about what he could do to step it up and knock off a couple pounds. Blaine loses himself in his thoughts, but he’s brought back to reality when there is a sudden knock on his dressing room door that makes him jump.

“Blaine! It’s me!” Kurt yells from outside. “I saw you walking in! Come out! I want to see what you picked out and show you what I found.” He chirps, fueled from the buzz of clothes shopping. Blaine takes a deep breath and looks at the mirror again. He really doesn’t want to show Kurt this outfit because personally he thinks he looks awful. Not having anything else to throw on, he sighs in defeat and opens the dressing room door. He steps out still looking down at the way the pants hug his waist. Finally lifting his head he sees Kurt coming into his line of sight. He’s wearing a nice long sleeve classic polo…and the same pair of blue pants. “Awww look at us.” Kurt says with a sweet smile. “We’re twins.” Blaine laughs trying to hide how uncomfortable he feels while his fiance is looking at him so intently.

As Blaine surveys Kurt’s outfit, he can’t believe how good he looks. Kurt’s chiseled body fits perfectly into the tight pants and his muscles look huge and defined in the polo. Most importantly, Kurt doesn’t have an ounce of body fat spilling over the waistband. It’s all muscle… _’Unlike me’_ he thinks to himself. “Well, I look awful in these pants.” Blaine says shyly.

“Are you kidding!?” Kurt exclaims. “You’re rocking those pants! I think you should buy two of them. You look great, besides they’re blue, and that color really suits you.”

“You have to say that.” Blaine mumbles, his eyes shifting around the room, refusing to make eye contact with the other man. “Because you’re my fiance, but the truth is the truth, and I know I don’t look good in these pants.” Kurt sighs. He’s been around Blaine long enough to know that when he’s in one of those moods it’s best not to argue and just let him be. So he just sighs and heads back into the dressing room to change…leaving his man all alone. Blaine, not knowing what else to do, heads back into the dressing room. Once back in the small room, he quickly changes out of the pants and sweater and hangs them back on their respective hangers, deciding not to get them. He steps out of the dressing room and hangs the clothes on the discard rack for the employee’s to put back up before roaming around the store while waiting for his fiance.

When Kurt comes out of the dressing room for the third time, Blaine starts to get impatient, but he knows he doesn’t want to upset his fiance so he puts on a happy smile, “Are you ready to go to a different store?”

“Yeah, I think I’ll take the last shirt I picked and the black pants. What are you going to buy?”

Blaine hesitates and looking at his almost empty hands, “Oh, hmmm…just these bowties”

Kurt frowns confused, “And what about the blue pants? Aren’t you buying one of those too?”

Blaine shakes his head. “Ummm no…I don’t really like them that much, so maybe I’ll find something else in another store…”

Kurt smiles, “Okay, then let’s go…I wanna make a quick stop at L’OCCITANE’s I’m running out of moisturizer” Blaine smiles and grabs his fiance’s hand as they walk to the register to pay for their clothes.

After visiting half the stores around the area, Kurt decides to sit for a while to rest his tired legs. Blaine takes a seat next to him and pulls out his phone getting lost in who knows what immediately. Kurt notices that his fiance has been very quiet and not being his usual talkative self so he asks, “Honey are you alright?”

“What?” Blaine asks vacantly, still distracted.

Kurt laughs a little, and tries again, “Are you alright?”

“Yeah, why?”

Kurt grabs his hand, “Well, because usually there’s no way to shut you up and today you’ve been very quiet…”

“Oh! Sorry…I didn’t notice that I was quiet. I was just-I was just thinking…”

Kurt looks at his fiance a little worried, “About?”

Blaine not wanting to reveal his real thoughts, replies with a lie, “About the school…You know there are some auditions coming up for the spring plays, and I was thinking that _maybe_ I could take a shot and go for one of them, though I’m not sure, I don’t really feel prepared”

Kurt claps excited, “No Blaine! You have to go! They are doing Sweeney Todd and you’re definitely a shoe in for Benjamin Barker! You don’t need to be prepared for that character…you were born to portray him!”

Blaine smiles a bit ashamed for having lied and simply replies, “Yeah maybe you’re right…I’ll probably try auditioning for that one”

Sensing his fiance’s uncertainty, Kurt reassures him, “Don’t worry Blaine. I’m sure you’ll get one of the parts. If you want, I can even help you get ready for the audition. I’m planning on auditioning for Newsies. I think I have a good shot at Jack”

Blaine smiles, “You’ll be the perfect Jack Kelly…I’m sure you’re going to get the part. And I can help you too…”

Kurt beams, excited for their accomplishments, “Perfect! Then we’ll help each other and make sure we both get our parts. Now let’s go! It’s kind of late and I’m starving, but I don’t want to eat here. I think I spent all my savings…Let’s go home!” Blaine stands up. Kurt clings to his fiance’s arm and they walk together towards the subway station to head home.

When the boys arrive home, Kurt immediately kicks off his shoes and collapses onto the nearest couch. “Oh my God! I’m exhausted and starving! But I think I need a shower first, you wanna join?” Kurt gives his lover a flirtatious grin.

“No, the idea sounds tempting, very tempting, but I think I’d better take care of the dinner. I’m kind of hungry too, but you go and take a shower.”

“You sure?” Kurt gives Blaine a smile. He is always so considerate.

“Completely, I’ll prepare something quick, so don’t take too long” Kurt walks over to  his man and kisses him quickly before closing the bathroom’s door behind him.

As soon as Kurt is out of sight Blaine powers up his laptop and opens his internet browser typing ‘ _gyms near Brunswick_ ’. The browser throws about 433,000 results, so he starts reading the first page quickly losing himself in the myriad of options he has at his disposal. After a couple of minutes he opens a page that says ‘ _Planet Fitness_ ’. The place seems to offer a 24/7 service. He knows that with the school and now with the auditions he has to prepare for, he’ll probably just have time to go at night, so this place seems to fit perfectly to his needs.

He clicks the ‘ _Join online now_ ’ button and starts filling the online membership. When he’s confirming his registration the bathroom’s door swings open. Kurt emerges with just a towel around his torso and Blaine looks up stunned by the sight of his half naked fiance and by the fact that he hasn’t even started to prepare dinner, “Crap! You really didn’t take long! I’m sorry! I’ll prepare dinner real quick”

Kurt smiles sweetly, “Don’t worry…What were you doing?” ** **  
****

Blaine quickly closes the laptop and stands up heading to the kitchen counter, “Oh! Just replying to my brother. Coop sent an email yesterday to just say hi, and tell us about his new commercial and I remembered I hadn’t replied…”

Kurt reaches the hazel-eyed man and grabs him from behind, “Did you say hi for me?”

“Of course! I always reply as _‘we’_ instead of _‘I’_ , we’re a team remember?”

Kurt quickly kisses Blaine’s neck before saying, “Good! I’ll go change and come back to help you with dinner, okay?”

“Don’t worry I can take care of–”

Kurt raises his hand and covers Blaine’s mouth, “Shhh…A team remember?” Blaine laughs, while the blue-eyed man walks away leaving Blaine thinking that maybe he should share his insecurities with his fiance. ‘ _But what insecurities?_ ’ He thinks to himself. _‘A couple of hours in the gym and I’ll be just fine, there’s no need to worry Kurt about something like that.’_ He reassures himself while chopping the vegetables to add to the homemade pizza he was about to put in the oven.

Rachel sits on her couch looking through the messages on her phone trying to figure out where things with her and Wes must have gone wrong. Earlier that day she had asked Wes out on a date. She had waited a couple weeks to see if he would ask her, thinking that their first date went so well. But, it had been four weeks since their last date and he still hadn’t dropped any hints towards asking her. So, with her new found confidence after their last date, when she initiated their kiss, she decided to be the one to ask him. It was the 21st century after all. Her problem now was that he had blown her off, making up some excuse about a photo-shoot for some magazine cover. She would of been totally okay with this if it were true because she understands work is important, and in their line of work, it is almost impossible to reschedule these things. But, the problem was that she could tell he was lying about it. He seemed nervous and stuttered more than usual and then quickly left after giving his excuse, which led Rachel to one conclusion; he lied.

So, that brings her to where she is at now, scrolling through her phone trying to figure out if she had done something or if he gave any hint as to why he would be acting so weird now and trying to avoid her. The brunette is reading through every message between her and Wesley when the laptop screen next to her lights up, announcing she has an incoming video call. Taking a look at the screen she sees Kurt’s picture pop up and quickly accepts the video call. The copper-haired boy at the other side of the country quickly exclaims, “Rachel! I got your text! Sorry we were having dinner, but tell me what happened?”

Rachel smiles at her friend and looks at the digital clock on the bottom right of her computer screen, “I’m fine…Well sort of. I feel like crap, but let’s wait for Santana, she should be here any minute now.”

In that moment the door of the condo swings open. Santana walks in, wearing black short shorts that show off her long toned legs and a lacy black tank top that is so small and tight that it leaves little to the imagination; all of which is attempting, but failing to be covered by her full length black silky robe with white polka dots.

“I’m here hobbit! What’s the big emergency that couldn’t wait until tomorrow? You know I have an audition, so this better be good or I swear I’m going to–”

Rachel turns around to look at her friend while a voice pipes up from the laptop sitting to the left of the brunette, “Does she has a key to your apartment?”

Santana frowns and walks to the computer and notices that Kurt is there too. “Oh! Lady-Hummel! I knew that flaming gay voice sounded kind of familiar…” ** **  
****

“Yeah I’ve missed you too Santana…”

The corners of Santana’s lips turn upward into what resembles as a smile, before asking, “How’s hobbit number two? Did you finally get rid of those hideous bowties or not?”

Kurt chuckles through the computer’s screen, “He’s fine. We’re both fine, and his bowties are not hideous…”

Santana laughs, “Of course they are, but keep telling that to yourself if it helps you sleep at night!”

Kurt frowns, deciding to change the subject he asks, “And what about you? What are you wearing?” Santana turns around and removing her black silky robe to show her friends her whole outfit she replies, “My pj’s!” Rachel and Kurt look at each other through the screen and burst out laughing. Santana, getting a bit offended demands, “What?”

Kurt clears his throat, “Well, those are not pj’s, Santana. That’s just a piece of cloth that got stuck on your body by accident”

Santana rolls her eyes, “Shut up. You’re just jealous of my hot body and killer legs.”

Kurt quickly starts to complain, “Please! How could I be jealous about your body! You’re–”

Rachel interrupts, “Can you two please stop arguing!? I called you both because I need some advice and you’re not really helping me right now!” Santana and Kurt stop glaring at one another and Rachel sighs, “Thanks! Now first of all, I’m sorry…I know it’s late in New York and Santana you were already in bed, but–”

Santana raises her hand to shut her friend, “Okay, we get it you’re sorry, but we’re here now… Tell us what the hell happened?”

Rachel goes on to tell them how she asked Wes out and how she’s pretty sure he lied to her face, “I just don’t get it. Things were going so great, or at least I thought they were. I mean he seemed really happy when I kissed him on Valent–”

“–hold up! You kissed him! Rachel have I taught you nothing?” Santana interrupts.

Rachel looks over to Santana confused, “What are you talking about? I’m pretty sure if I’ve listened to anything you’ve ever told me, then I would have slept with him on the first date. If I remember correctly your exact words were _‘never say no’_.” Santana just rolls her eyes.

Kurt then jumps in, “Okay, first off, I say good for you Rachel, kudos for being the one to make the first move. Second, how do you know he’s lying? He is a big name star and he may actually have stuff going on.”

“No Kurt, you should’ve seen him. I can tell when he is lying. It was like he couldn’t even look me in the eye. I want to believe him, I really do, but now I’m just questioning if I can even trust him. What do you guys think?” Rachel looks between Santana, who is sitting on the couch cushion next to her and the laptop screen sitting on her lap.

“Honestly? I think you should give him the benefit of the doubt. You don’t know his reasoning for lying, if he even did and you’re not 100 percent sure he’s lying.” Rachel shakes her head at Kurt’s answer. He did have a point.

“Ummm, no. Rachel, trust no one!” Santana quips in.

“What? Why? Come on Santana, don’t you trust Brittany?” Rachel quirks an eyebrow questioning the Latina.

“Well, yeah, of course, but she’s different. She’s Brittany. But seriously, don’t trust anyone until proven not guilty.” Santana shrugs her shoulders as if her statement was mere facts.

“Wait! Isn’t it innocent until proven guilty not the other way around?” Rachel asks.

“Rachel don’t listen to her, just because she has trust issues doesn’t mean you should.” Kurt tries to speak over Santana.

“I do not have trust issues!” Santana retorts.

“Okay! Stop! Please, this is serious! I really, really like this guy and since Finn died, I haven’t felt this way about anyone.”

Both Kurt and Santana get silent and mumble their _‘I’m sorry’s’_. Rachel smiles at her friends, “Okay, so what do you guys think I should do?”

Santana quickly replies, “First of all, find out if he actually lied. Maybe you’re just making this whole thing up. My advice? Follow his publicist. You know they have to know what he’s doing pretty much all the time. Plus, they love to gossip and brag about their clients, so if he really is doing a photo-shoot for a magazine, you’ll hear about it."

“I hate to admit it, but Santana’s right…You’ve to find out what the truth is before you jump to any conclusions.”

Rachel thinks about her friends’ advices for a minute and then asks, “And what if he lied?” Kurt and Santana look at each other through the screen because they know Rachel is really worried about that possibility.

Sighing, Kurt’s voice softens, “Well then you’ll know who you’re dealing with…”

“And you’ll have two options. Leave him now before things get serious or revenge” Santana says slightly dejected.

“Santana!” Kurt immediately exclaims.

Santana turns towards the screen and adds, “What? It’s true…An eye for an eye…”

Kurt rolls his eyes, “Please, Rachel, don’t listen to her. If he’s lying just ask him why, and if his answer is not what you were expecting then use Santana’s first advice.”

“Or use my second advice and I can even help you with that. We can make a whole–” Santana starts before Kurt interrupts, “Stop it Santana! We are here to help, not to make things worse!”

Santana crosses her arms in self defense, glaring at the computer screen, “That’s also helping Kurt! If someone is lying to Rachel, we should help her get her revenge! That’s only fair! If this guy has been fooling her, she should be able to do the same to him! We will not let him hurt her.” Rachel smiles sweetly at Santana, because she knows that’s her very unique way of telling she’s worried about her.

“Oh goodness Satan, your feelings are showing.” Kurt laughs out teasing Santana knowing that this was all her strange way of trying to protect her friend because deep down, and even though she wouldn’t admit it, she truly cares about them.

Santana rolls her eyes and grabs her robe, sliding it back on her shoulders, “Okay Lady-lips, isn’t it time for your scheduled sexy times with Mr. Gay-Danny Zuko?”

Kurt blushes, “We do not schedule it, Santana!…But Blaine as Danny from Grease does sound pretty cute and even sexy.”

“Gross! If you ever roll play with that I might just throw up knowing I gave you the idea.” The three friends look between them with knowing smiles that this was them getting back to their true selves. Like old times they were laughing together and harmlessly picking on each other like only true friends do. No matter how far apart they all end up being they truly believed they would always be able to fall back into old habits together.

Blaine weaves through the crowd at NYADA’s cafeteria with his phone wedged between his shoulder and his ear. He makes his way to the _a la carte_ section looking for something to eat while talking on the phone with his friend.

“So, you decided to do a trust lesson this week?” Blaine asks talking into his phone.

_“Yeah, but then they asked for an example and I sang the first trust song I could think of, and all I could think about was Mercedes. Some of them noticed something was wrong with me.”_ Sam’s voice travels through the phone and Blaine has to press the phone closer against his ear to hear him over the roaring voices in the lunch room.

“Who noticed?” Blaine questions the Glee Club teacher.

“ _Umm…Kitty…_ ” Sam replies, _“And maybe, Marley, and Unique, and Jake, and pretty much all of them…”_

Blaine picks up a saran wrapped egg salad sandwich and looks it over in his hands, searching for the nutritional value statistics. “I really don’t get what’s going on between you two. I mean you love her right?  She obviously wants you back, so what’s the problem?”

_“It’s not that simple, Blaine.”_  Sam huff’s into the receiver. _“We’ve been through a lot, and I just don’t know if it’s such a good idea to put each other though all of that again…”_ The blonde rambles on about his thoughts and feelings, venting to his best friend.

“How many calories does this have?” Blaine lifts the sandwich up to show the lady at the register, missing half of what the man on the other side of the phone is saying.

Hearing Blaine’s question, Sam stops his rant, _“Why are you asking for calories?”_

Blaine realizes he didn’t cover the phone speaker before asking so instead of telling the truth he tries to come up with a quick excuse, “Oh! No! It’s not for me…It’s for a friend. …James. He’s on this new very strict diet, and I guess he feels bad for eating a couple slices of pizza yesterday. He asked me to buy him a sandwich, so I was just trying to help…Anyways, you were saying?”

“ _Oh-Okay…Yeah I was saying that I’m not sure that the whole trust idea is such a good idea. I mean how am I supposed to teach these kids to trust each other if I still can’t trust the girl I love_?”

Blaine frowns a bit confused, “Trust her in what?”

_“I don’t know man, trust that she wouldn’t leave again, trust she won’t break my heart again…You know this has happened before”_ Sam whispers as if he was afraid to admit his insecurities to himself, let alone out loud.

“I think you should take your own assignment and try to learn how to trust in her again, maybe talk to her, but mostly try to listen to what she’s been trying to tell you since she arrived there.”

_“Yeah, you’re probably right…But it’s easier said than done so we’ll see…And what about Kurt?”_

Blaine, still thinking they are talking about trust, immediately responds, “Of course I trust in him!”

The blonde is confused by his friend’s response because he didn’t ask if Blaine trusted his fiance or not, he just wanted to know how he was doing. “Yeah, I suppose you do. I would hope so, you’re getting married right? I was just asking about how he was doing. I haven’t talked to him in awhile…”

Blaine internally panics ‘ _damn!_ ’ he says to himself and recovering his voice he adds, “Oh! Right!…He’s good, we’re good. We’re kind of busy, but everything is working out fine.”

Blaine walks out the cafeteria, leaving the sandwich behind deciding to skip this one meal, not wanting to risk the unknown number of calories. “Well, hey, Sam, I really hope you figure things out with Mercedes and I’m always here to talk. I’m about to head into my next class, but call me back sometime this week and let me know how your assignment is going.”

_“Sure man! I’ll keep you posted! Say hi to Kurt for me, okay?”_

“Will do! Talk to you later! Bye!” Blaine says as he hangs up and walks towards his next class saying ‘ _hi’_ to some classmates that he passes on the way.

A blonde girl is trying to concentrate on the _Theater History_ book that she has in front of her, but the constant coughs from the girl sitting on the bed next to her keep her from focusing. She has been reading the same line over and over again without really understanding a single word. Quinn sighs in defeat and closes the book, placing it on the nightstand besides her. “How are you feeling?” She asks.

The girl next to her turns around and looks at her friend with a ‘ _are you serious_ ’ look. Quinn laughs, “What?”

The girl rolls her eyes and with a very congested voice, “Do you really have to ask how I’m feeling? I believe that my runny nose and this new rough sexy voice are enough to give me away…”

Quinn laughs again, “I’m sorry Sarah. Yeah, your runny nose and that new sexy voice do give you away, but I think it’s mostly your noisy coughs.” Sarah rolls her eyes again. Quinn tries to suppress her smile, “Okay I won’t make fun of you, but seriously you don’t look good. Did you take any medicine?” Quinn’s roommate nods as she blows her nose.

Quinn looks at her sick roommate with sympathy, “I’ll make you some lemon tea…I can add some honey if you want” The sick girl gives a congested reply, “Thanks Q!” Quinn smiles and stands up from her bed to make the tea for her friend.

When the green eyed girl is adding the honey to sweeten the tea, the laptop over by her bed starts to ring, announcing an incoming video-call. Quinn quickly grabs the cup of tea and hands it to her friend before running to her bed to see who’s calling. The moment she sees the photo of her boyfriend in his Air Force uniform pop up on the screen, her whole expression changes and with a squeal she exclaims, “It’s Puck!!”

Her friend turns around, almost as excited as Quinn, “Finally! You’ve been waiting for that call for weeks! Go and talk to him…I’ll be fine!”

Quinn smiles at her friend, “Are you sure?”

Sarah nods and with her raspy voice says, “Yes, now go and say _‘hi’_ for me, okay?” Quinn gives her a perfect smile and grabs her laptop as she leaves the room.

Quinn clicks the green answer button and a very smiling man pops up. “Hi, beautiful!” Puck still dressed in his military uniform, gives his girlfriend a huge grin. The Yale student can’t hide her smile as she looks at her boyfriend, “Puck! Oh my God! I was starting to get worried! How are you? Where are you now? I’m so glad to see you!”

Puck smiles sweetly at his girlfriend, “I’m fine, just a bit tired. These past few weeks have been one hell of a challenge. There’s this new team that just joined our regiment and it took us a while to get used to each other…”

“But, where are you?” The blonde girl asks again. Apparently her boyfriend didn’t hear all her questions.

“Oh, sorry…I don’t know; right now? I think somewhere overseas”

Quinn frowns, “So, you’re on a boat? How do you have internet?”

Puck chuckles, “Babe, we’re the Air Force, not some cheap cruise”

Quinn laughs and takes a seat on one of the couches in the common room before  asking more questions, “Okay, tell me about you. Are you already friends with all the guys from the new group?”

The man in uniform chuckles, “No, they’re all a bunch of jerks, well maybe not all of them…Shane is nice. By the way, I almost forgot! He’s dating Tina!”

Quinn opens her eyes completely stunned, “Wait! Wait! Wait! Tina? As in Tina Cohen-Chang?”

“The very same…can you believe it?”

The blonde shakes her head, “No…okay, I hate to ask you this, but I need to do it for science and maybe to tell Santana and Kurt. Are you sure he’s not gay?”

Puck bursts out laughing while his girlfriend waits expectantly for the answer. “No, he’s not! I can’t believe you asked that just to tell Santana and Kurt! Leave the poor girl alone! She has had some trouble finding a nice guy, but I think he’s the good one. He looks happy when he’s talking about her…” ** **  
****

Quinn stares at her boyfriend for a couple of minutes halfway wondering if seeing her love might just be a daydream, “Leave the poor girl alone? Oh my God, Puck! Who are you and what did you do to the real Puckerman?”

Puck winks, “I’m the same guy, maybe just a bit older…”

Quinn smirks, “and hotter.” She teases her soldier.

“I agree with you. Every morning when I look at myself in the mirror I say the same thing, _‘Damn Puck you’re one hot man!’_ ” causing his girlfriend to cry of laughter.

After chatting a bit about Puck’s life he turns the tables to his girlfriend, “Okay enough about me! Your turn. I’ve read all your emails, so you don’t need to catch me up on that, but tell me…What are your plans for this weekend? You said in one of them something about a reunion…?”

“Yeah, well it’s not a reunion, reunion…It’s more like a party.”

Puck frowns, “Like a party or a _party_?”

“Ummm a _party._ ” Replies the blonde with a light chuckle. Puck makes a disapproving look and Quinn immediately frowns, “What? What’s wrong?” The man shakes his head, but his girlfriend knows him so well so she insists, “What is it?”

Puck sighs, “Well, I don’t like the idea of you hanging around a bunch of stupid college guys who are probably going to try to step over the line.”

Quinn’s eyes open wide, she can’t believe what she’s hearing. “Excuse me? DO you honestly think I’m going to cheat on you with one of those stupid frat boys?” Puck doesn’t reply and just shrugs. Quinn’s jaw drops dramatically.

“I can’t believe you actually think I’m going to cheat on you!"

Puck, who has decided to act like a jerk, says, “Well, you’re alone, and I’m very, very far away and I don’t know… A couple of drinks and a guy can be very persuasive and even convince you to relive your high school glorious days.”

She frowns, trying to control the anger that’s threatening to come out, “Wow! Really Puckerman? What about you? If you want to bring _‘our glorious high school days’_ into this, then I’m afraid you’re going to lose because you’ve never been one to stay faithful!”

Puckerman gets offended from his girlfriend’s harsh words, “But I’m alone Quinn! For God’s sake, I’m with guys all the time! Guys!”

Quinn rolls her eyes and losing all her control she yells, “Yeah! Like there are only males in the Air Force!”

Puck flares his nostrils showing his anger too, “Of course we are not just men. There are girls too, but in my regiment there are no girls…None!”

“Yeah right! And what about that gala a few weeks ago? Didn’t you mention some girls named Caitie, Alexis and Jessica?” Quinn integrates.

“That was a one time thing! And for starters it was a formal gala, and all the regiments were there so obviously there were girls! Lots of them! And yeah I met some of them, and they were really cool, but that’s it! Don’t you trust me?” Puck questions; his temper rising.

Quinn hesitates, letting her eyes look around the room before landing back on the screen in front of her, “No, why would I?”

Puck’s expression changes. He’s obviously hurt by Quinn’s comment, “Because I’m your boyfriend…But you know what? We’re even, because I don’t trust you either! If you’re judging me for my past, then I’ll do the same thing! You weren’t exactly a little angel in high school either! You cheated on Finn and Sam! Why wouldn’t you do the same with me?” The two lovers get quiet because the former football player made a point. Taking a deep breath and letting it out slowly Puck speaks with a calmer voice, “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to say that…It’s just that I thought you said you could see how much I’ve changed…”

Quinn sighs, and trying to calm down too, she says, “And I can see it…Sometimes”

Puck frowns, “What do you mean?”

She looks at her boyfriend’s green eyes trying to find the right words, “I don’t know… Sometimes this is confusing! I wish I knew where your heart is! One moment I feel like this is what you want and the next I’m not so sure…”

Puck begins to freak out, “Wait! You think I’m not sure about us?”

Quinn tentatively bites her bottom lip before letting all her fears that she had kept silent come spilling out, “Since we got back together and you gave that big speech at McKinley about me being your soul mate and all that, you really haven’t done anything to show it. Yeah, you call me every now and then, and keep telling me how much you miss me and love me, but…Sometimes I don’t feel that-that you’re committed enough to make this whole long distance relationship to work. You don’t know how hard it is to be your girlfriend! When you’re out there doing, God knows what, I’m here sitting in front of this computer waiting for you to call me and sometimes that takes months!”

Trying not to lose control again he retorts, “Okay, I think you need to think about what you just said. I’m not here on vacation! I’m in the army! I’m working!”

Quinn lowers her gaze, “I’m not the only one who needs to think about this and you know that…”

Tired of his girlfriend’s shenanigans, Puck finally explodes, “You know what? I’ll call you later. You’re impossible to deal with when you’re acting like this!”

Quinn rolls her eyes, getting upset that he would so easily hang up when they never knew when they would be able to talk again, “Yeah whatever Puck! Have a good night!” closing the laptop without letting her boyfriend to say anything else.

Quinn stands up from the couch running her hands through her medium length blonde hair. She starts to sing as she runs to the nearest bathroom to hide her teary face. The former Cheerio hated to fight with Puck and to cry, but what they had said to each other had hurt her deeply.

_(Quinn)…I don’t believe, in the smile that you leave. When you walk away and say goodbye…_

Hugging her laptop close to her chest, Quinn opens the bathroom’s door and lets out a relieved sigh. The place is empty. She walks to the sink and places her laptop there. Leaning her hand on the white porcelain sink, she looks up into the mirror and sees the tears overflowing in her eyes and spilling down her cheeks.

_(Quinn)…Well I don’t expect the world to move underneath me, But for God’s sake, Could you try?…_

Memories of all the good times she has gone through with Puck go through her mind… the first time they kissed, babysitting Mr. Schue’s now ex-wife’s nephews, their food fight in the cooking room at school, when Beth was born, how he threw her ex boyfriend, Nate, in the dumpster.

_(Quinn)…I know that you’re true to me, You’re always there, you say you care. I know that you want to be mine…_

Wiping the remaining tears on her face, Quinn walks out the bathroom and heads to her room. While making her way through the halls, fellow students keep looking at her with confused expressions. All of them are thinking the same thing, _‘why is she singing?’_

_(Quinn)…Where is your heart? ‘Cause I don’t really feel you…Where is your heart? What I really want is to believe you…Is it so hard, to give me what I need? I want your heart to bleed, That’s all I’m asking for…Oh, where is your heart?…_

When Quinn reaches her room a wave of regret, anger, love, frustration, and disappointment hits her, making her lean over the wall to look for some support while she continues singing.

_(Quinn)…I don’t understand, your love is so cold, It’s always me that’s reaching out for your hand…And I’ve always dreamed that love would be effortless like a petal fallin’ to the ground. A dreamer followin’ his dream…_

Quinn enters her room and finds Sarah sitting cross-legged on her bed. She’s staring at her with a questioning look.

_(Quinn)…Where is your heart? ‘Cause I don’t really feel you…Where is your heart? What I really want is to believe you…Is it so hard to give me what I need? I want your heart to bleed and that’s all I’m asking for…Oh, where is your heart?_

Quinn sings the chorus again, trying to let go of her feelings and emotions. When she’s about to start the second part of the song Sarah speaks up to shut her friend up, “Okay, enough! I get that you were in the Glee club in high school and, you have a beautiful voice, but you can’t go around here randomly singing! In some movies it’s okay, even in T.V shows, but this is real life…Just tell me what happened like a normal person. Why were you singing that song? Was it about Puck?” Quinn sighs and the tears return to her eyes. Sarah notices her friend’s reaction and begins to sympathize, “He’s the problem, isn’t he?” Quinn nods and sobs while more tears cover her face.

“Don’t worry Q! I’m sure it’s not that bad…tell me what happened and I’ll try to help…” Sarah pats the empty spot next to her on her bed motioning for Quinn to sit down. Taking the hint, the blonde takes a seat and her friend immediately wraps her arms around her roommate as Quinn hiccups between sobs, telling Sarah about Puck and her fight with him.

Santana and Brittany sit at their dining room table eating breakfast. “Are you sure you wanna come with me, B? I’m not sure how long I’ll going to be there.” Santana asks her girlfriend before taking a bite of her toast.

“Yeah, of course, I wanna be there for moral support. I mean you got a call back, so I gotta be there when you get the part.” Brittany says with a mouth full of scrambled eggs.

Santana smiles lovingly at her girlfriend and leans over in her seat to kiss the blonde’s cheek. “I doubt I’ll find out today if I got the part, but thanks Britt. You always believe in me.” Brittany blushes slightly while swallowing her mouth full of food.

After finishing their breakfast and getting dressed for the day, the two woman hail a cab and make their way downtown. Arriving at the tall building lined with glass windows where Santana’s call back is being held. They step out of the cab and with laced fingers walk to the front door and into the building’s foyer. The shorter woman spots the receptionist and along with her girlfriend walk over to the lady behind the front desk.

“Hi, I’m Santana Lopez. I have a call back today for _Perks of Being A Girl._ ”  Santana informs the woman.

The brunette behind the desk looks up to Santana through her red rimmed glasses, “Right, Ms. Lopez, you can wait over there.” She points to a roped off hallway that has chairs lining the walls, “…with all the other girls and guys here for call backs. And I’m sorry, but this is as far as anyone who isn’t an auditionee can go.” She says looking at Brittany.

Santana, a tad let down says, “Oh, okay.”

“But, there are some tables over there if you’d like to wait for her Ms.” The receptionist speaks to Brittany who smiles, “Yeah, that’s no problem.”

“Umm, just a quick question. My call back is for the lead Carmen. Do you know how many other people got callbacks for that roll?” Santana questions.

“I’m not sure, Ms. Lopez. I just write down who shows up and direct them over there. Sorry, I wish I could be more help, but best of luck to you though.”

Santana, with a small smile says, “No, yeah. I get it. Thank you though.” Turning to her girlfriend, the brunette smiles, “Wish me luck?” Santana scrunches her nose causing the blonde to laugh.

“You don’t need it because you’re amazing, but good luck hon.” Brittany leans in and gives her girlfriend a peck on the lips.

Letting out a long sign, Santana turns to walk down the small hallway and joins the other actors and actresses. Before she gets out of ears reaches Brittany calls out to her, “San!"

Santana stops and turns quickly looking back to her lover. “Yeah?”

The dancer smiles at her girlfriend, “I believe in you!”

Remembering those exact words coming from her girlfriend all those years ago, Santana shakes her head with a smile playing at her lips. Brittany sends her a wink before turning and taking a seat at one of the tables. Once sitting she pulls out her phone to play Cut the Rope to pass time.

Looking up from her phone every now and then, Brittany looks down the hallway and sees Santana looking back at her causing her to blush slightly. It isn’t until the fourth time that Brittany looks up towards her girlfriend that she sees that Santana is no longer alone. The Latina is talking with a couple other actresses. Brittany watches as Santana makes conversation with the two other girls. It all seems pretty innocent until the blonde notices one of the girls stepping into Santana’s personal space and running her hand up her girlfriend’s forearm. Trying not to think too much about the girl obviously hitting on her girlfriend, she looks away and tries to focus on her phone.

A couple seconds pass by and Brittany is tempted to look towards Santana again. This time when she looks up she feels a small pang in her chest when she sees the beautiful auburn, haired, actress reach an arm up and move a stray piece of hair out of her girlfriend’s eyes. The worst thing about it is that Santana is smiling back at the girl. With scrunched brow, Brittany bites her lip and reminds herself that Santana loves her and she has no reason to be jealous. With all interest in her phone now lost, Brittany watches the two woman closely with only the thud of her fast beating heart ringing in her ears.

Swallowing thickly, Brittany’s eyes cast over to the door that has just swung open and  a short, black haired, woman steps out calling Santana’s name. The blonde looks back to where her girlfriend is standing and sees her and the other girl whispering a few words to each other. When Santana goes to walk away the other actress playfully pats the Latina on the butt. Brittany’s eyes go wide and look to Santana’s face expecting to find some reassuring gesture from her girlfriend, but she just sees her laughing before disappearing behind heavy wooden door.

Brittany is now longer feeling sad. As soon as that girl slapped Santana’s butt she had moved on to pissed and hurt. _‘How could Santana let that girl flirt with her when I’m sitting right here?’_ The blonde thinks to herself. Feeling the rise and fall of her tightening chest, Brittany quickly stands up and bursts out the front door needing some fresh air. She begins to walk down the sidewalk, feeling the tears start to pool in her eyes.

With her phone still in her right hand, she lifts it to look over the screen. Brittany flips through her contacts before landing on Amy Brewster, from the dance studio she has been visiting a couple days a week. Pressing the green phone icon on her phone she brings the device up to her ear listening to it ring.

_“Hello?”_ Amy pauses to wait for a response from the blonde, but when there isn’t one she continues, _“Brittany? Are you okay?”_

“Hi, yeah I’m okay, just being stupid I guess.” Brittany stops walking and turns back around to head back to the building to wait for Santana, knowing if she goes too far she’d probably get lost.

_“Hey, I thought Santana made a rule you weren’t allowed to call yourself that.”_ Amy chuckles. _“What’s going on? And why are you calling yourself stupid?”_

“I know San loves me, but now I’m having all these insecurities about myself, and I don’t know if I can trust myself to trust her–” Brittany starts talking fast.

_“Wait, wait, What? Brittany you’re not making sense, start over and tell me what happened?”_ Amy says sounding confused on what her friend is talking about.

Taking a deep breath and looking down at the ground, focusing on her steps so she doesn’t trip. Brittany starts over trying to explain from the beginning. “I’m downtown waiting for Santana to get done with her audition. Remember that audition she had a little while back? Well she got a call back so that’s where I’m at now.”

_“Okay, but what does that have to do with these insecurities, Brittany?”_ She is still confused why Brittany called her sounding  like she was on the verge of tears.

“I was sitting at this table waiting for her.  While I was sitting there, she was with all the other people in line for their callbacks. Anyways, there was this girl flirting with her, but not mild flirting, more like hard core flirting, Amy! I was sitting down the hall and I couldn’t hear what they were saying, but even from where I was, I could tell she was flirting with her and the worst part is, is that Santana didn’t do anything to stop her! She just smiled and laughed. And I know Santana loves me, I know this like I know there is a gnome in the dryer stealing my socks” Amy tries to suppress a laugh. “But what if some big time actress comes by and wants Santana? I mean, come on! She’s beautiful and confident and she’s just perfect, so who wouldn’t want her? And what if Santana ends up wanting them instead of me?”

_“And why she would like any of those girls?”_

Brittany remains silent for a moment as if she was afraid to say the words out loud, before timidly responding, “Well because I’m just…A girl who still talks to her cat and colors coloring books in her spare time. I can’t lose her again. We’re finally together and happy, or at least I thought we were. I want to trust Santana, and I do trust her. I think the problem is that maybe I don’t trust that I’m good enough for her. I don’t know, but sometimes it’s hard. How do I-How do I trust that she wouldn’t want one of these tall beautiful models instead of me?” By now the blonde is choking on her own tears as she rants out the million of thoughts filling her head.

_“Okay, you’re crazy if you think Santana would ever want anyone over you. You are a wonderful human being, Brittany. I know you probably feel terrible for not trusting Santana, or yourself right now, but you gotta understand that if you’re having these feelings, it’s just because you love and care about Santana, so that’s a good sign. I’ve only known you two for a couple months and it’s painfully obvious how much she loves you, but if it’s really bothering you then talk to her about it! Don’t keep this to yourself!”_ Her fellow dancer friend states matter of factly.

Brittany has one hand holding the phone to her ear and biting her thumb nail on the other thinking over what Amy said. “Yeah, you’re right. San and I have never really kept anything from each other, so I should just talk to her. Thanks for letting me vent to you.” Brittany wipes her cheeks to rid them of her tears.

_“That’s what friends are for.”_ The sweet girl on the other side of the phone comforts the blonde; pausing for a brief second before adding, _“Are you coming by the studio today? I have a hip hop class for 10-12 year old’s today if you wanna help out. It’s a class of 20, so I could probably use the help.”_

“Um, I’d love to, but I’ll have to check with San and see what her plans are for the rest of the day.”

_“No problem, I understand. You guys need to talk so maybe I’ll just see you later this week?”_ her new L.A. friend says while the blonde taps her foot against the wall.

“Definitely. Thanks again, I’ll talk to you later Amy” Brittany says as she exhales.

_“Anytime. Tell Santana I said ‘Hi’.”_ Amy smiles through the phone.

“I will, bye.” Brittany presses her lips in a tight lips smile.

_“Bye.”_ After hanging up, Brittany shoves her phone in her back pocket and leans back up against the brick of the tall building, deciding to stay there to calm down a bit until Santana is finished and not wanting to see the other actress ever again.

Rachel is back on set of her show, working in close proximities with Wesley. She has spent all day trying to concentrate on their shared scenes, but she can’t help but replay the conversation she had with Santana and Kurt the night before in her head every time she looks at the man whose integrity is in question. She is standing next to Wes, wrapping up the end of their scene, when the director yells “Cut!”

Rachel lets out a thankful sigh and instead of walking back to her trailer to get ready and rehearse her next scene; the brunette walks toward a small table placed at the end of each set where the crew usually gathers around to talk while the actors are busy shooting.

“Hi Howard!” Rachel beams to a man standing there. He’s carrying some wires and placing some boxes on a forklift.

“Oh! Hi, Miss Berry! How are you?”

Rachel smiles at the man in front of her, “I’m fine thanks…I was wondering if you’ve seen Mr. Turner?”

Howard brushes the dust off his hands before saying, “Yeah he said he’ll be at the cafeteria while Mr. Grey was filming.”

Rachel smiles and reaches over to shake hands with the crew member, “Thanks…See you later!” before walking away.

When Rachel reaches the network’s cafeteria the first thing she notices is that the place is crowded, but Felix Turner, Wesley’s publicist, is there sitting alone at one of the tables. The brunette thanks the universe for her good luck and after buying a coffee she casually walks to the table saying, “Hi, Felix!”

The man looks up from his newspaper and smiles at Rachel, “Oh, Hi Rachel! How are you? Aren’t you supposed to be shooting some scenes right now? Wes, is there, right?”

“Yeah, don’t worry, he’s shooting some solo scenes. The director decided to move our scenes together for later…Do you mind if I sit with you? The place is crowded and–”

“Sure! Please be my guest and take a seat…” Felix says moving some of his stuff so Rachel can sit.

Rachel takes a seat next to the man and smiles warmly. She likes Felix, he has always been nice to her, so she feels a little guilty for using him to get information about Wesley. But, a bigger part of her needed to find out what’s really going on with him.

“So tell me Rachel…How things are going?”

“Great! We have three episodes already wrapped and we’re filming scenes for episo–”

“…for episodes four, five and six. I know. Don’t forget, I’m Wesley’s shadow. Or at least that’s what he calls me. I was asking about your life…How things are going with you?”

Rachel blushes, a bit ashamed and shocked that he would even ask, “Oh! Sorry…I’m fine, great, actually. I think I’m finally getting used to this city. I miss New York and Broadway every day, but I think this is a great opportunity for me. Thanks for asking”

“You’re a brave girl. Dropping that Broadway show was a risky move, but if this show works, which I’m sure it will, then your career is going to go up in the blink of an eye. You’ll see” The publicist gives Rachel some experienced advice with a cheeky smile.

Rachel smiles back and lowers her gaze trying to hide her blush, “Thanks. I hope you’re right…Accepting this role has been the hardest decision I’ve ever had to make.”

“Everything is going to be okay…Don’t worry. Broadway is a good place to start and as far as I know you did great, but if you really want to be in the Hollywood industry, then you’re on the right path.” The man adds winking.

The brunette smiles and takes a sip of her coffee. She glances a peak at the publicist’s wrist watch she realizes her break is almost over so gathering all her courage asks the dreaded question, “Hmmm… and-and how was the photo-shoot for the magazine?”

Felix frowns confused and replies, “The photo-shoot for GQ?” Rachel nods and the publicist continues, “We haven’t done that yet. The shoot is scheduled for next week.”

Rachel a bit stunned, backtracks, “Oh! Sorry! Maybe I didn’t understand what Wesley said. I thought the shoot was scheduled for yesterday. He left as soon as we finished with the scenes.”

The man next to her shakes his head, “Surely you didn’t understand what he said or maybe he didn’t explain himself. He just went to see Ellie!” Something inside Rachel crumbles down. Wes not only lied, now it’s seems that he’s seeing another woman. She knew that Wesley couldn’t be perfect, but she didn’t think he was capable of lying and cheating.

“Yeah, maybe I didn’t hear right. Anyways…I gotta go. I need to-to get ready to shoot some scenes in ten minutes. Thanks for letting me sit here with you. I guess I’ll see you later” Rachel says trying to hide her discomfort.

“Sure, no problem, Rachel! Anytime! I’ll see you around, okay?”

Rachel says her goodbyes and walks away making her way to the show set. She’s fighting back tears and trying to convince herself that if Wesley is capable of doing something like cheating, then he doesn’t deserve her tears.

When the former Glee star reaches the show set, Wesley is there still filming. The director is giving him some instructions and Rachel looks at him. The blue-eyed man looks up and gives her a sweet crooked smile. The brunette doesn’t smile back, she just keeps staring at him trying to see the true Wesley Grey, because everything she thought she knew about him has turned out to be a sham. Wesley takes his position and before starting to shoot the scene turns around and looking at Rachel again mouths, “ _See you tonight_ ”. Rachel turns around and murmurs to herself, “Yeah, right! Why don’t you go and see Ellie?” While a song starts to play in her mind

_(Rachel)…If your lips are moving, if your lips are moving. If your lips are moving, then you’re lyin’, lyin’, lyin’, baby. If your lips are moving, if your lips are moving. If your lips are moving, then you’re lyin’, lyin’, lyin’, baby…_

Rachel takes a seat at her set chair and while waiting for her turn to start working again, looks at the blue-eyed man intently with judging eyes. Wesley is shooting a scene at some prop bar. Between takes looks over at Rachel and gives her sweet smiles. Rachel takes out her phone from her pocket and types a quick text message to Santana and Kurt. The screen says, “He lied! It’s confirmed!”

_(Rachel)…Boy, look at me in my face tell me that you’re not just about this bass. You really think I could be replaced? Nah, I come from outer space and I’m a classy girl, I’mma hold it up. You’re full of something but it ain’t love and what we got, straight overdue. Go find somebody new! You can buy me diamond earrings and deny-ny-ny, ny-ny-ny, deny-ny but I smell her on your collar so goodbye-bye-bye, bye-bye-bye…_

Rachel keeps singing and the director walks by and hands her a copy of the script so she can start rehearsing. She flips through the pages forcefully, still looking out at Wesley.

_(Rachel)…I know you lie ‘Cause your lips are moving. Tell me do you think I’m dumb? I might be young, but I ain’t stupid. Talking around in circles with your tongue. I gave you bass, you gave me sweet talk saying how I’m your number one, but I know you lie ’cause your lips are moving. Baby don’t you know I’m done…_

Wesley finishes shooting his solo scenes and the director calls Rachel, who is still singing out her anger and pain, to join the blue-eyed man on set. Rachel takes a deep breath and walks through the small prop department and into her makeshift living room. She’s internally struggling with this scene because she’s supposed to be hugging and smiling at Ben when right now all she wants to do is slap the man portraying him.

_(Rachel)…If your lips are moving, if your lips are moving. If your lips are moving, then you’re lyin’, lyin’, lyin’, baby. If your lips are moving, if your lips are moving. If your lips are moving, then you’re lyin’, lyin’, lyin’, baby…_

During one of the scenes, Wesley, as Ben, grabs Rachel’s hand and gives a very sweet and moving speech. Rachel trying to remain in character, looks at him and smiles, but can’t stop looking at her Co-Star’s mouth and think that everything that’s coming out of it are lies and more lies.

_(Rachel)…Hey baby don’t you bring them tears ’cause it’s too late, too late baby. You only love me when you’re here, you’re so two-faced, two-faced babe. You can buy me diamond earrings and deny-ny-ny, ny-ny-ny, deny-ny but I smell her on your collar so goodbye-bye-bye, bye-bye-bye…_

When the director cuts the first scene Rachel notices Wesley walking towards her, so the brunette, trying not to be near him, walks to the opposite direction and stands next to the director. Wesley is quickly stopped by the makeup team who insist he needs a touch-up. Rachel looks at how Wesley smiles and flirts with all the makeup ladies and asks to herself, _‘Why didn’t I notice that before?’_

_(Rachel)…I know you lie ’cause your lips are moving. Tell me do you think I’m dumb? I might be young, but I ain’t stupid. Talking around in circles with your tongue. I gave you bass, you gave me sweet talk saying how I’m your number one, but I know you lie ’cause your lips are moving. Baby don’t you know I’m done…_

The director calls all the actors for the second scene and Rachel, being the professional she is, takes her place next to Wesley. The extras step onto set and they start to shoot while Rachel keeps singing.

_(Rachel)…Come on, say! If your lips are moving, if your lips are moving. If your lips are moving, then you’re lyin’, lyin’, lyin’,. If your lips are moving, if your lips are moving. If your lips are moving, then you’re lyin’, lyin’, lyin’…_

The director wraps up that particular scene and Rachel walks towards her chair and grabs her script to rehearse the lines for the next scene. She reads the script and her first line is, _‘I know you lied.’_ The brunette smiles at the irony and lets her voice speak her mind, while taking her place.

_(Rachel)…I know you lie ’cause your lips are moving. Tell me do you think I’m dumb? I might be young, but I ain’t stupid. Talking around in circles with your tongue. I gave you bass, you gave me sweet talk saying how I’m your number one, but I know you lie ’cause your lips are moving. Baby don’t you know I’m done._

Wesley and Rachel finish shooting and immediately her handsome Co-Star walks by and grabs Rachel’s hand. She turns around and looks at him with cold eyes. He opens his mouth to say something but before he can let a word out the director yells from the other side of the room, “Rachel! Could you come here for a second?”

Rachel yells a response to the director and Wesley reluctantly lets go of her hand. She walks away, internally thanking the director for his incredible timing.

Blaine makes his way into the _Planet Fitness_ gym, he spots the front desk where he needs to collect his new black membership card and the instructions to get to his new locker. After changing into his sportswear the hazel-eyed man walks back to the gym area. The whole place is divided off in different sections. The men and women’s lockers are off to the right with tanning beds next to them. Cardio is located straight ahead, weightlifting behind cardio, and the personal training section on the left. The former Warbler looks around and notices that a very tall, muscular guy is walking towards him. “You’re new around here, right?” The guy asks.

Blaine looks up, “Yeah, it’s my first day.”

The tall man smiles, “That’s great! Welcome to Planet Fitness!  My name is Harry Scott!” he says extending his hand towards Blaine, “I’m one of the personal trainers!”

Blaine shakes hands with the trainer, “Nice to meet you Harry. My name’s Blaine.” He says, while the toned man squeezes his hand tightly.

“I suppose you don’t have a routine, right?” Blaine shakes his head and Harry continues with a smile, “Okay, don’t worry I’m here to help with that. Can I ask what type of membership did you get?” Harry asks.

“Black.” Blaine tells the instructor.

“Perfect! That means we’ll have you here for some time, so we won’t waste time with the whole tour around the place, you’ll have plenty of time to get familiar with all our areas. You just need to know that here in _Planet Fitness_ we have all the equipment necessary for you to reach your goal and with the black membership you have access to any personal trainer here! We suggest picking one that will stick with you through out your experience here. If you’d like I could help you with that! I’m here everyday from 2pm till 10pm, so if any days of the week those hours work for you I could sculpt out the perfect routine for you. Now, tell me what do you want to achieve body-wise and I’ll give you the perfect routine!” Blaine begins to feel a little overwhelmed as Harry continues to share details about the gym.

After sharing with the trainer some of his _‘goals’_ , Blaine walks over to a desk where Harry gives him an exercise program to follow for a week. As Blaine reads the paper the trainer suggests, “You can start in the treadmills to acquire some stamina. I’ll be around to help you, but if you need me to teach you how to use the equipment then let me know. I’m here to help.”

Blaine shakes his head. “Thanks Harry, but I think I have everything under control. I’ll let you know if I need your help”

“Sure! Now go and have some fun! And welcome again!”

Blaine smiles and walks over to the cardio section. He looks at the paper in his hand and realizes that the trainer suggested only 30 minutes as a start on the treadmills. The hazel-eyed man frowns. He wants to  see results soon so instead of following the routine, he jumps into the treadmill and sets the timer to one hour instead of the half an hour suggested.

After some intense training in the cardio section, Blaine decides to try his luck in the weightlifting room. He makes his way to the smith machine. After adjusting the weight he wants to lift and placing his water bottle on one side of the machine and sticking his ear buds to his headphones in his ears, the NYADA student starts a very exhausting workout routine. When he feels that his arms are being depleted due to the effort, he decides to stop grabbing his towel from the floor to wipe the sweat dripping down his neck. The moment he picks up the towel, he notices that the screen of his phone is lighted. Confused, he takes the phone and frowns when the screen pops up a picture of Quinn Fabray. He takes a deep breath and trying to calm his exhausted heart, he slides his finger to answer the call. “Quinn? Are you alright?”

The girl at the other side of the phone replies with an excited voice, _“Hi Blaine! Yeah I’m fine, though I was worried about you. I called you like ten times before! Kurt gave me your number and said you were at the gym, but that by now you were supposed to be home! Are you okay?”_

Blaine quickly removes the phone from his ear to check the clock. ‘ _Crap! It’s late’_ He thinks to himself while placing the phone back to his ear. “Yeah I’m fine. I’m still at the gym, today was my first day so I was just getting familiar with the machines and the services here. It’s a really great place, a bit expensive, but I think it’s worth it…But anyways! It’s really nice to hear your voice! How have you been? How’s Yale treating you?”

_“I’m great and I’m loving the college life! It’s amazing in here! I love all my classes, well not all of them. There’s this playwriting class that I hate so much, but other than that I think I’m where I was destined to be! But tell me about you! How things are at NYADA?”_

Blaine smiles and grabbing his things from the floor he walks to the locker room while talking to his friend. “I’m doing great! Next week I have an audition for the spring play and I’m preparing for that, and we start exams soon, so I guess I’ll be busy in the next couple of weeks.”

_“Yeah, Kurt mentioned something about Newsies and Sweeney Todd”_ The blonde replies.

“Yeah we’re helping each other…I’m auditioning for Sweeney and he’s going to try with Newsies. We both want the lead roles, so we’re working really hard.”

_“That’s great! I’m sure you both are going to get the parts. I’m glad to hear you guys are okay, and by the way…Congrats!”_ Quinn exclaims excited.

Blaine frowns and opening the locker he questions, confused, “Why?”

_“Because I know you finally got rid of all the home invaders!”_ Blaine bursts out laughing as Quinn does too. She continues, _“When I heard Santana and Brittany moved to L.A. I couldn’t believe it! I thought you four would be roomies forever. It’s not a secret Brittany fell in love with N.Y.C. when she moved there.”_

Blaine takes out his clothes and pressing his phone between his ear and shoulder he exclaims, “Yeah, but I think she loves Santana more.”

Quinn chuckles, _“Those two are crazy in love with each other…And talking about love…Have you talked to Tina?”_ Blaine nods, even though he knows the blonde can’t really see him, “Yeah, we talked at least twice a month, why?”

_“Did you know she’s dating someone?”_

Blaine closes his locker and grabbing the phone with his hand again, “A guy named Shane, right?"

_“Yes! And guess what?”_ Quinn quizzes her former Glee Club peer .

Blaine frowns a bit confused, “Um, I don’t know…What?”

_“He’s Puck’s co-recruitment!”_ Quinn replies excited.

“Really?” Blaine questions, he really didn’t see that coming. Quinn lets out a quick ‘ _yep_ ’ and Blaine continues, “Wow! This is really a small world! How did that happen?”

_“I don’t know, that’s why I called you. I lost my old phone and I don’t have her number, I really would like to talk to her now that we both have military boyfriends.”_ Quinn says between giggles.

Blaine laughs too, “Don’t worry, I’ll text you her number immediately.”

_“Thanks Blaine! It was so nice talking to you, let’s do that more often, okay?”_

“Sure!” the former Warbler promises her"

_“Keep me posted if either of you guys get your parts! okay?”_

“Will do! Say hi to Puck when you talk to him, okay?”

Quinn, trying to hide her anger towards her boyfriend, responds, _“Yeah I will. Have a nice week!”_

“You too! Bye!” Blaine says as he ends the call and grabbing his bag walks out the gym to go home.

Santana comes striding out from behind the four paneled door with a smile on her face. Walking down the hallway, she frowns when she doesn’t see Brittany sitting at the table anymore. Looking over her shoulder and around the room for the blonde, Santana scrunches her brows in confusion and eventually comes to the conclusion that she must have stepped outside. Santana pushes the large glass door open and steps out into the Los Angeles sun. She looks to her right and doesn’t see her girlfriend, so she quickly looks to the left and a couple yards down, she sees Brittany leaning up against the side of the building. Santana quickly walks, well as quick as her heels will allow her to, over to the blonde with a wide smile spread on her face.

“Oh my god, Britt! I think I totally nailed that audition!” The shorter girl exclaims. She is now standing in front of her girlfriend, who just wears a small smile that doesn’t reach her eyes. “Hey what’s wrong, Britt?” Santana places her tan hands on Brittany’s pale alabaster skin smoothing it over and leaning into her girlfriend’s embrace. She continues without giving Brittany a chance to answer her question, “Thank you for coming and hanging out while I did that. Knowing you were out here waiting for me really helped. You’re like my good luck charm!” Santana is smiling at her girlfriend so hard it pushes up her cheeks.

Brittany looks down to her feet and mumbles under her breath, “Or maybe that other girl was.”

Santana barely catches the words her girlfriend whispers, but when she hears it, she is immediately confused, “What?”

The blonde looks up into her girlfriend’s brown eyes and falters for a second before her mind flashes with images of the actress’s hands on her girlfriend. Remembering what Amy said, Brittany puts on the best scowl she can muster up and says, “I was sitting right in front of you when that girl was flirting with you. I’m not stupid. Did you think I wouldn’t see? ”

Taking a step out of her girlfriend’s space, Santana, having no idea what the blonde is talking about, immediately gets defensive at the accusation, “What the hell are you talking about? And I never said you were stupid!”

Brittany thinks Santana is just trying to play coy so she just continues, ignoring the Latina’s question. She looks up to the brunette’s face out of the corners of her eyes and asks “Do you think she’s cute?”

“Where is this coming from? Who are you even talking about?” Santana shakes her head and pulls away from Brittany completely and walking towards the curb of the sidewalk sticking her arm out trying to wave down a cab.

“The other actress, Santana! She was all over you and you didn’t do a thing to stop it!” Brittany’s bottom lip quivers as new tears start to surface in her eyes. Biting her bottom lip refusing to seem weak, she tries to blink away the impending tears. “If anything…” She pauses standing behind Santana before continuing, “…It seemed like you were enjoying the attention. You know it’s one thing to do something behind my back, but it’s a whole other thing to do it with me right there watching!” As much as she tried, Brittany couldn’t keep the emotional quiver out of her voice giving away she is more sad than pissed.

“Woah! Are you suggesting I’m cheated on you?” Santana spins around looking to the taller woman with a shocked and hurt expression, “I didn’t do anything wrong! I have never, and I would never cheat on you! I was talking to her, there was no flirting involved. She’s auditioning for my character’s best friend, or something, and we were wishing each other luck, that’s all!”

“I’m not saying you cheated on me, Santana!” The blonde sighs and tries to continue, but the cab pulls up gaining the brunette’s attention.

Climbing in the back Santana gives the driver their apartment’s address and sits there quietly waiting for Brittany to climb in too. The blonde slides in next to her and starts to say, “Santana I really think–”

“I’m not arguing with you in the back of a cab!” Santana whispers harshly, still very evident that she is really hurt by Brittany’s words.

The cab ride back to their apartment is silent. Both women stick to looking out to their respective windows not saying a word, but the air that hangs between them is thick with a tension they have never experienced before.

Finally arriving in front of their apartment, Santana is the first one to get out of the cab. Normally she would turn and offer a hand to her girlfriend, but she just couldn’t bring herself to do it right now; so she just keeps walking into their apartment building with Brittany slowly trailing behind her. Walking through their apartment door, Santana walks to the bedroom when Brittany speaks up, her voice still laced with anger, “You’re not even going to finish this conversation with me?”

Santana stops in her tracks. She was hoping to try to get some space so she didn’t have to yell at her girlfriend. She always told herself that she would try her best to never raise her voice to the blonde woman, but in this moment Brittany’s words have cut her deeply and if Brittany wanted to pick a fight it had worked. She turns around pointing a finger towards Brittany with tears betraying her stern voice, “How could you? You should trust me Brittany! I have never given you any reason not to trust me!” She paces the hallway leading down the middle of their small apartment running a hand through her long raven locks. She feels her heart beating in her stomach. Brittany and her, of course, have had their disagreements like any other couple, but at the end of all of their were small fights, because that’s what she now considers them compared to this one. They always knew they loved each other. That was never a question, or at least she thought it wasn’t, because now her girlfriend was standing in front of her pretty much telling her she couldn’t trust her. The brunette is mumbling under breath trying to find the words to express how she is feeling. She opens her mouth to speak to the blonde standing in front of her, “Tú me conoces mejor que nadie, y si tú piensas que no puedes confiar en mi entonces estoy realmente herida.” (translation: You know me better than anyone, and if you think you can not trust me then I’m really hurt.)”.

Brittany’s face contorts in confusion. Santana has been teaching her Spanish for a while now and she could pick up a few words the Latina said, but it was too fast for her to fully understand. She opens her mouth to say something, but immediately closes it again when she sees a tear slip from brown angry eyes.

Bringing her left hand up to quickly wipe away her tears, hoping her girlfriend hadn’t seen them, Santana continues talking, “It’s you Brittany! It’s always been you and you know I would never do anything to intentionally hurt you…But obviously you don’t have the same respect for me. If you honestly can’t trust me…That hurts.” Santana turns around, she can hear the small ‘ _Santana wait!’_ escaping her girlfriend’s lips, but she is too upset and she needs to just get away. Walking through their bedroom door she slams it behind her leaning her back on the closed door and letting out a few jagged breaths as a couple more tears roll down her face staining her cheeks. She shakes her head, pushing off of the door and heads toward the bathroom, thinking maybe a shower would help her clean off the sweat, and anger, to help her calm down.

On the other side of the door, Brittany is left standing in the middle of their hallway staring at their closed bedroom door. She knew she messed up from the moment she heard Santana yell out _Brittany,_ very rarely using her full name. Brittany knew she was in the wrong. Santana was right. She has never given her a reason to not trust her. Sure, Santana cheated on Sam and Dave, and probably all the other guys she dated in high school, but that was different. That was because they both were still secretly in love with each other. But ever since they admitted their true feelings for each other and got together, the Latina has never done anything to give her a reason not to trust her. Santana was always making sure Brittany was happy over anyone else, even herself.

The blue eyed woman knew it was just her own insecurities that she was taking out on her girlfriend, but part of her couldn’t help it. When she looks at Santana she sees perfection and sometimes it still amazes her after all these years that she gets to call her hers. ‘ _She’s just so amazing and beautiful, everyone would want her, so I get jealous’_ She explains to herself.

Thinking she should probably clear her head and let Santana have some space, because she is probably still really upset with her, Brittany grabs her gym bag and heads towards the front door.

_(Brittany)…I don’t like the way she’s looking at you. I’m starting to think you want her too. Am I crazy, have I lost ya? Even though I know you love me, can’t help it…_

She closes the door behind her and slings her bag over her shoulder. Taking a deep breath she looks up to the dark clouds in the sky and can’t help but think how appropriate they are for how she is feeling in that moment.

_(Brittany)…I turn my chin music up, And I’m puffing my chest, I’m getting red in the face.You can call me obsessed. It’s not your fault that they hover, I mean no disrespect. It’s my right to be hellish, I still get jealous!…_

The blonde walks down the apartment building steps and down the sidewalk when she feels a few sporadic rain drops fall from the sky hitting her head and shoulders.

_(Brittany)…’Cause you’re just way too beautiful and everybody wants a taste, that’s why I still get jealous…_

She keeps walking at a slow pace with her hands shoved in her blue short pockets ignoring the way the rain is starting to fall harder and faster, soaking her hair.

_(Brittany)…’Cause you’re just way too beautiful and everybody wants a taste, that’s why I still get jealous…_

By now the rain is falling all around her and as much as it doesn’t bother her, she can hear Santana’s concerned voice telling her she will get sick, so she sticks her arm out and hails a cab.

_(Brittany)…I wish you didn’t have to post it all. I wish you’d save a little bit just for me. Protective or possessive, yeah.  Call it passive or aggressive…_

After giving the address to the dance studio, that is only two blocks away, the cab pulls away from the curb and Brittany looks out the window and watches as the droplets hit the piece of glass.

_(Brittany)…I turn my chin music up, And I’m puffing my chest, I’m getting red in the face.You can call me obsessed. It’s not your fault that they hover, I mean no disrespect. It’s my right to be hellish, I still get jealous!…_

Letting out a sigh, Brittany brings her right hand up to the window and draws a heart in the fog that is slowly crawling up the glass from her hot breath hitting it as she sings.

_(Brittany)…’Cause you’re just way too beautiful and everybody wants a taste, that’s why I still get jealous…_

It doesn’t take long for the cab to make it the two blocks to her friend’s dance studio, _The Unknown is Known_. After slipping the driver some money she gets out of the cab and walks through the front doors of the studio.

_(Brittany)…’Cause you’re just way too beautiful and everybody wants a taste, that’s why I still get jealous…_

Even though she has only been coming to the studio for a couple months now the blonde has quickly made friends there. Walking in and gaining a bunch of waves and _‘Hi’s’_ from the instructors and fellow dancers, Brittany shoots them all a small smile then turns away from them and walking into an empty studio room.

_(Brittany)…You’re the only one invited. I said there’s no one else for you.’Cause you know I get excited, yeah. When you get jealous too!…_

She sets her bag down in the front of the room by the mirrors and lifts her head to see her reflection. Staring back at her are deep blue, sad eyes. Pushing off the wooden bar that is connected to the mirror, she does a quick spin, liking the way the air moved around her as she did so. Feeling her adrenaline start pumping, the blonde starts to make her way around the room putting all her emotions into her dance moves.

_(Brittany)…I turn my chin music up, And I’m puffing my chest, I’m getting red in the face.You can call me obsessed. It’s not your fault that they hover, I mean no disrespect. It’s my right to be hellish, I still get jealous!…_

She can feel the tightening and burn in her muscles, but she doesn’t care getting lost in her own world as she spins around. She continues to sing and dance not stopping her movements until the sound of her phone chirps.

_(Brittany)…’Cause you’re just way too beautiful and everybody wants a taste, that’s why I still get jealous…_

Walking the short distance to her phone that sits by her bag the dancer picks it up and a pink towel. Wiping her sweat from her forehead she looks down to her phone’s screen and sees she got a text from Santana that reads, _‘I’m sorry I stormed out…Please just let me know your okay.’_ Letting out a deep sigh she slowly feels some of her pent up tension leave her body with the sweat that is rolling down her neck and back. She types out a quick reply, _‘I’m okay’,_ before changing into some dry clean clothes. She knows she should probably say something more, but she feels embarrassed and still a little mad.

_(Brittany)…’Cause you’re just way too beautiful and everybody wants a taste, that’s why I still get jealous…_

Images of Santana fill the blonde’s mind. She realizes that her insecurities are irrational, but now that they were in L.A. and Santana hand one foot in the industry with Hollywood Brittany couldn’t help but wonder why the brunette would want her over these other woman. _‘You are the unicorn’,_ Santana’s voice rings in her head. With a soft smile playing at her lips she continues to sing.

_(Brittany)…Oh (that’s why) I still get jealous…_

After grabbing her rain and sweat filled clothes and shoving it her bag she exits the studio with a new determination to get to her girlfriend and apologize.

_(Brittany)…Oh (that’s why) I still get jealous…_

Quinn sits in a booth at Panera, sipping on a herbal tea and flipping through her _‘The Routledge Introduction to Theatre and Performance Studies’_ textbook that sits on the table in front of her. Groaning out in frustration, the blonde slams the book closed and brings her hands up to rub at her temples.

She decides it’s time for a break, so she looks through her purse in search for her phone. Finding the device at the bottom of her blue Coach purse, she scrolls through her text messages looking for Blaine’s message he sent earlier that day with Tina’s phone number. After dialing the former Glee member’s number, she brings the phone up to her ear listening to the dial tone ring three times before finally being answered.

_“I’m not interested in the Asian package.”_ Is the first thing Quinn hears. She frowns in confusion and pulls the phone away from her ear, checking the screen to see if she dialed the right number. Bringing the black phone back to her ear, she speaks into the device, “Tina?”

Tina, recognizing the blonde’s voice replies, _“Quinn? Quinn Fabray?”_

“Yeah, last time I checked I was still me…How are you?” The blonde laughs.

Tina being her usual self questions, _“Why are you calling me?”_

Quinn chuckles, “Yeah, I’m fine too, Tina”

The Asian girl realizes she’s been acting rude, and a bit ashamed she shyly asks, _“Oh sorry…How have you been? I’m fine…It’s just so weird for you to call. Who gave you my number?”_

“Oh, Blaine…I talked to him today.”  Quinn calmly replies as she picks some crumbs off the table and then dusts them off her fingers onto her now empty plate.

_“My boo! How is he? We talked two weeks ago! It’s been so long!”_ Tina’s voice shows her excitement at the mention of her friend.

“Your boo?” Quinn quirks a brow thinking how strange Tina’s nickname for Blaine is. “Anyways, so I heard you have a new man…”

The Brown University student mumbles through the phone, _“I knew Blaine couldn’t keep a secret…”_

Quinn, taking a sip of her herbal tea explains, “Blaine didn’t tell me, Puck did.” Before putting her glass back on the wooden table and playing with her straw, stirring the ice.

_“And how did Puck find out? I haven’t really talked to you since you graduated, let alone Puck.”_

The blonde opens her mouth to respond, but the sound of her voice is drowned out by a clunking sound of coins falling from the other side of the phone. “Tina where are–” Quinn starts to ask, but the roaring of a machine starting drowns out her voice.

_“Did you say something?”_ Tina asks, practically yelling into the phone.

“Yeah, where are you?” Quinn asks shouting the question through the phone. All the people around her turn around to look at the Yale student, who just lowers her gaze and presses the phone closer to her ear to try to listen to what her friend is saying.

_“At the laundromat…Why?”_ Tina replies still yelling.

“Could you walk out? I can’t hear a thing you’re saying!” Quinn says watching not to raise a lot the volume of her voice .

_“I can’t. My stuff is in here! I’ll just try to speak louder…But tell me, how did Puck find out about my new boyfriend?”_

Quinn sighs, and resigned to having to practically merge her ear to the phone, answers Tina’s question, “He’s in Puck’s co-recruitment, hasn’t your boyfriend told you about Puck?”

The other side of the line goes silence for some seconds, well as silence as the roaring of the machines allow it to be, and then the Asian girl replies, _“No…He just mentioned a buddy named Noah…"_

Quinn laughs, “Well, then he did. Remember that Puck’s real name is actually Noah. Noah Puckerman.”

The Asian girl gasps, _“Oh my God! Of course! Shane told me he’s his only real friend there. I never thought that the Noah he was talking about was Puck! That’s weird, but incredibly awesome at the same time, right?”_

Quinn nods and smiling through the phone she says, “Yeah, I guess. Now we have something else in common.”

Tina quickly gets over the awkwardness of the phone call when she realizes she has a reason to gush about her man. She’s been dying to talk about him with someone who can actually understand her. Quinn listens to her friend’s never ending stories about how awesome this Shane guy is until she can’t take it any more, “Okay, yeah, I got it! You’re in love! Congrats! I’m truly happy for you, but can I ask you something?” The blonde asks.

_“Sure! What is it?”_ Tina asks. Willing to do anything to help her friend.

“How do you deal with it? How do you deal with him being away all the time? How do you trust him?” Quinn picks up her empty plate and cup and with the phone still held to her ear. She stands up and walks to the trash can throwing away her trash and places her plate and silverware in their respective bins.

Instead of answering her friend’s questions, Tina asks, _“Are you having problems with Puck?”_

Walking back to her booth and sitting down at the table, Quinn sighs and lowers her gaze to hide her sad expression from all the prying eyes that are still looking at her. She stutters, “Yeah…Sort of, we had a–”

The blonde starts to say, but in that moment Tina yells through the phone, _“Hey you! Wait! That’s not yours!”_ making her friend to frown in confusion.

“Excuse me?” Quinn pauses her conversation.

Tina, realizing she just shouted through the phone, apologizes, _“Sorry about that! There was this man trying to steal my soap powder, but you were saying?”_

Quinn laughs a little because she can picture Tina giving this man a killing look after trying to steal the soap powder, “Oh, okay… I was just saying that we had a fight yesterday”

_“Why?”_ Tina voice laced with worry.

Quinn explains to her friend how Puck started it by saying he didn’t like the idea of her attending a party, and how they both said things that they really didn’t mean and how now she’s afraid she’s going to lose him, “…And I really don’t know how to change that. It’s like suddenly being his girlfriend is just too hard!” she almost yells out in frustration.

_“Don’t worry Quinn. I kind of had the same problem with Shane when we started dating. The uncertainty of not knowing when you’re going to see each other again really test you two and see if you can really be a couple.”_ Tina explains to the blonde, who is still sitting alone in the booth and playing with the frayed pages of her notebook. 

“Yeah, I know and I’m sure, we will make it through it, but right now I’m not sure…I hate to admit this, but I feel like I can’t trust him.” Quinn chews the inside of her cheek.

_“Well, that’s certainly your problem, because my doubts about this long distance relationship ended the moment I decided to trust in him faithfully.”_ Tina states as if it is simply facts.

Quinn sighs, “You say that like it’s so simple, like you can just flip a switch. How can you do that?”

Tina remains silent for a couple of minutes, _“Well…For starters Shane is not Puckerman–”_

Quinn lets out a sarcastic, _‘Thanks Tina’_

Then the Asian girl continues, _“Sorry, about that. I know Puck has changed a lot so never mind me okay? Listen, I think that trusting your partner is a big part of any relationship, especially in a long distance relationship. You have to decide if you love Puck enough to try to trust him and forget about his past, because if you don’t do that…Then you’ll both just drive each other crazy."_

“You think?” Quinn asks with a kind of doubt in her voice.

_“I’m sure. Well, at least that’s how it worked with Shane and I. I know I love him enough to trust in him regardless of what he’s done in his life.”_ Quinn can practically hear the love coming from Tina’s voice.

“No offense Tina, but how can you trust a guy that you’ve only been dating for what? two months?” The blonde scoffs slightly with a shake of her head.

_“Three”_ Tina corrects and continues, _“But time is not important, Quinn! You can be madly in love with someone you just met yesterday or with your first love, like you and Puck.”_

“If you say so…” Quinn sarcastically makes fun of the starry eyed woman.

_“I know it sounds crazy, but it’s the truth. And don’t worry. I know it’s hard to trust–”_ The Asian starts to say, but the sound of more machines start roar through the phone. Quinn pulls the phone away from her ear and sighs waiting for the noise to end. When the blonde notices that’s probably not going to happen, she brings the phone back to her ear, “Tina? Are you still there?”

_“Yes!”_ Tina yells causing Quinn to pull away the phone before her friend can break her ear, _“There’s a lot of noise, so I’ll just speak louder, okay?”_

Quinn laughs, because there’s really no need for her friend to say that, the blonde knows she’s definitely speaking louder. She doesn’t need to have the phone pressed to her ear to actually hear what the girl at the other side of the phone is saying anymore.

_“So, I know it’s hard to trust in him Quinn, but at least try to do it! It’s not like they’re cheating on us, you know? They’re overseas and that means no sex! Though that’s funny because if you think about it, that means no sex for us too!”_ Tina yells through the phone.

Quinn blushes because the guy seated next to her turned around and now he’s looking at her with a very lustful look. She’s sure he heard the ‘ _no sex for us’_ part. “Oh my God, Tina! Did you really have to shout that? Come on! Now thanks to you the guy next to me is giving me this creepy look! And I bet half the people there doing their laundry heard that we are lacking a sex life because our boyfriends are who knows where!”

Tina apologizes and Quinn just smiles, but the guy next to her keeps looking at the blonde sending her winks and making her feel really uncomfortable. She grabs her purse and books, and quickly makes her way out of the building. “Okay, now I’m walking out the restaurant I was in because that guy was seriously giving me the creeps. If you hear I’ve been kidnapped call 911 please.” Quinn laughs at her own joke.

Tina laughs too, _“Okay, don’t worry I will…I’m walking out too. I just finished, so now we can talk without yelling at each other.”_

“Good, because I really want to know what to do. I don’t want to lose Puck. He’s the one, he always has been.” Quinn rolls her eyes at her sappy comment as she tries to ignore the small smile playing at her lips at the thought of her boyfriend.

_“If he’s the one, then trust him and everything is going to be fine”_

“That’s not easy…” The blonde states, while taking a cab to go home.

_“I never said it was easy, but if you want to be with him it’s what you’ll have to do"_

Quinn chuckles, “Do I have any other option?”

_“Join the Air-Force and stalk him day and night”_ Tina jokes.

Quinn bursts out laughing. She hates to admit it but Tina has a point. The only option she has now is to trust the man she loves. Quinn exhales and with a sad voice admits, “You’re right, but now I have another problem…”

_“What is it?”_ Tina asks.

“I don’t know when he’s going to be free again to call me…You know it may be weeks before I hear from him again!”

_“Well that’s definitely a problem…Shane told me they were supposed to be in the new campbase in two weeks, so maybe you can try calling him then…?”_

Quinn sighs in defeat while climbing out of the cab and walking to the entrance of her college building. “Yeah, I just hope that he doesn’t want to break up with me by then…”

_“Quinn…he loves you! He’s not going to break up with you, don’t worry!”_

“Thanks Tina. It was nice to talk to someone who understand what having a military boyfriend feels like…”

_“Yeah, who would have thought you and I would end up dating military guys!”_

“Super weird. Anyways…I’m home. Thanks for listening to my problems and thanks for your advice. I’ll talk to you soon, okay?”

_“Anytime Quinn! You have my number, I’ll be waiting for your call. Say hi to Puck when you talk to him okay?”_

“I will and you say hi to Shane when you talk to him and tell him to take care of my boy”

Tina laughs, _“I will…Bye Quinn!”_

Quinn ends the call as she opens the door of her dorm. Sarah immediately jumps from her bed and exclaims, “Quinn! Where have you been?”

The blonde frowns in confusion. She wasn’t expecting the sudden police interrogation, “I went for a coffee _‘mom’_ …Why?”

Sarah laughs sarcastically, “Well my dear because your computer has been ringing non-stop for three hours now! I think it’s Puck!”

Quinn’s green eyes open wide and she walks over to her computer. There are at least 30 missing calls from him. Sarah, who’s standing behind her and looking at the screen, pipes in, “I think he really wants to apologize…” Quinn immediately gets excited. She knows Puck’s busy, but he’s still trying to contact her and that means he cares. So, with a new smile on her face, the Yale student clicks on the green call button. It’s time to fix things with the love of her life.

It’s late and the T.V. show set is still buzzing with activity. People come and go as they change the set design, lighting, add or remove props. The actors and actresses keep shooting scene after scene. It’s one of those exhausting days that never seem to come to an end. One of the actors, a tall man with bright blue eyes, is standing with both his arms extended in one of the corners of the prop apartment with a group of at least five people surrounding him. He has his eyes partially closed and just repeats out loud, “Are you done?” over and over again to the ladies who are trying to make some adjustments or _‘improvements’_ as they call it, to his attire.

“Just a moment Mr. Grey. We have to add a few more details and it’ll be ready” A lady in her late fifties replies.

“You’ve been saying the same thing with all the costume changes today, Sally!” Wesley Grey replies, getting a little irritated.

“I know Mr. Grey, I know. It’s been a busy day for all of us, I promise we’ll be done soon. You seem pretty stressed out…Is everything okay?” The sweet lady asks.

“Yeah, everything is fine…” The actor snaps while opening his eyes, “Well…I guess it is” he looks sideways at his co-star who’s just a feet away from him. She’s looking at one of the scripts completely oblivious to the desperate look of her partner.

Wesley has been trying to talk to Rachel all day. Ever since this morning, she has been acting distant with him and that’s a really weird behavior between them. Usually, they are laughing and flirting and having a great time while working, but today things seems to be completely different. The confused and desperate man looks again towards his co-star and for a brief second their eyes meet. Wesley smiles, but the actress quickly looks down leaving the actor questioning himself yet again. He doesn’t know why, but he has the impression that she’s just trying to avoid him. All of the times, he had tried to ask her about it, the brunette either walked to talk to the director, or the director called her over, so until now he hasn’t had any luck.

“It’s ready, Mr. Grey! You can lower your arms now.” Sally says.

Wesley exhales, relieved, his arms were beginning to ache. He had kept them in the same position for a very long time. “Thank you Sally! I can’t wait to finish this scene!”

The lady gives him a sweet smile and asks, “So you can go home?”

Wesley smiles and shrugging he replies, “Yeah…Something like that”

The director calls everyone to set and while the team settles, Wesley walks over and takes his place next to Rachel. The brunette doesn’t move and keeps looking straight to the camera. The director yells, “Action!” And immediately everyone steps into their characters. Wesley, as Ben, grabs Rachel’s hand and though they’re acting, he can see through her brown eyes that something’s different. Despite the tension between them, Wesley tries to follow his lines and the scene flows smoothly. It’s really late, so everybody does their best effort to finish the scene in one take. When the director grabs his megaphone, Wesley is already looking over at Rachel. The short man yells “Cut” And the whole group scatters around creating a small chaos inside the set. Wesley quickly runs to look for Rachel, but the brunette is not there anymore. He walks toward the exit and runs into Howard, one of the crew member.

“Howard! Hi! Have you seen Rachel?”

“Hi, Mr.Grey, she just passed by. I think she was on her way to her trailer…” Howard replies.

“Wesley, Howard. Wesley…How many times do I have to tell you I’m just Wes? Mr. Grey was my father…never mind, thanks…see you tomorrow, okay?”

The crew member nods with a giant grin, “Have a nice night Mr.Grey.”

Wesley rolls his eyes and just laughs walking away while shaking his head. He doesn’t like when people call him Mr.Grey. It makes him feel old.

When the T.V. star reaches the hallway that connects most of network sets with the trailers lot, he catches sight of Rachel. She’s walking towards her trailer so in an attempt to stop her, Wesley shouts, “Rachel!” Which makes the brunette stop in her tracks. Rachel turns around and when she sees that Wesley is the one calling her, she quickly turns her back and runs towards her trailer. Wesley stays frozen for a minute trying to understand his Co-Star’s reaction before shaking his head, running to try and catch her.

Wesley reaches the brunette’s trailer when she’s just stepping in, the out of breath actor pants in desperation, “Rachel wai–,” But he can’t even finish his sentence because the mad actress slams the door in his face. Wesley looks at the closed door with a confused expression, thinking to himself, ‘ _What the hell is wrong with her?_ ’ And taking a deep breath he knocks on the door. “Rachel? What’s wrong? Why are you treating me like this? What did I do?”

He waits for an answer, but unfortunately there isn’t one. Sighing and not willing to give up just yet, he knocks again. “Please, Rachel! Open the door! I want to know what happened! I want to see you!”

This time there is a reply from the other side of the closed door as Rachel yells, “Why don’t you go and see Ellie instead!?”

When the actor hears Ellie’s name he manages to put all the pieces together. He never told Rachel about her, so he knows she must have learned about her with someone else, and that can’t be good. He’s sure Rachel knows he lied and suddenly all the brunette’s reactions make sense. He takes a deep breath and gets closer to the door so the girl on the other side could hear him. “Can I at least explain what happened?”

Rachel snaps a big and resounding, “No!”

Wesley rolls his eyes and gets a bit frustrated because of her reaction, “Please, Rachel! That’s not fair! I didn’t even know you were mad at me! At least let me explain!”

“I don’t want to hear your explanations, Grey! You lied and that’s all that matters! Go away!” Rachel shouts through her trailer door.

Wesley sighs trying not to lose his patience. He knows he made a mistake and he has a reasonable explanation…At least reasonable enough for him, but Rachel is not helping and he really doesn’t want to fight with her. “Please Rachel, It’s not what you think!”

Rachel, still using that tone of voice that he thought she only used when she was in character, replies “You’re a liar, Wesley Grey! Go away!”

Wesley leans over the door and completely defeated confesses, “You’re right, Rachel. I’m a liar. I lied to you, and you don’t know how sorry I am for that. I know that since Valentine’s day I’ve been acting…Distant to say the least, but I promise you it’s not what you’re thinking. Let me explain what really happened, okay?” Rachel doesn’t reply and Wesley practically begging pleads, “Give me just five minutes and if you don’t want to see me ever again I’ll understand, but at least hear me out…” ** **  
****

After a few seconds the trailer door slowly opens. Wesley looks at the girl in front of him and notices that her expression reflects that she’s really mad and he can read in her big brown eyes that she’s deeply hurt, expecting to hear the worst from him. The actor whispers coyly a simple “Hi…”

Rachel doesn’t reply and just stands there by the door looking at him. Wesley quickly looks inside the trailer then turns back to the short brunette, “Can I come in? Or do you want us to talk here?”

The girl with a very harsh voice replies, “You said five minutes, you’re already wasting one…What do you want?”

Wesley sighs, Rachel had never treated him like that and that hurts so he just says, “Can we at least sit down? You can leave the door open if you want…”

Rachel rolls her eyes giving him a quick, “Fine!” walking inside her trailer without looking back at the man who’s following her.

The tense couple sits on opposite sides of the big couch. The atmosphere is heavy and Wesley feels really uncomfortable. Rachel is looking at him with hard eyes and his brain doesn’t seem to find the right words to begin to tell his story. After some time he takes a deep breath and with his eyes fixed to the ground, “I don’t know how to start…”

The brunette using her harsh tone sneers, “You have 3 minutes now.”

Looking up and giving her a _‘don’t be mean look_ ’. Rachel looks away from his sad glare and Wesley continues, “This is not easy to explain, okay?”

Rachel turns around and looks at him straight in the eye, “Just say it, okay! I already know! You’re dating this Ellie girl and you’ve only been playing with my feelings!”

Wesley gets lost for a minute. It’s the first time since they started this new more than friends relationship that Rachel has admitted to having feelings for him, so a bit distracted because of that sudden confession he asks, “Do you have feelings for me?”

Lowering her gaze and without looking at him she murmurs, “It doesn’t matter anymore…”

“Of course it does!” Wes stares at her with his blue-eyes that plead for her to give him answer; he really wants to know.

“Wesley, if you’re not going to _‘explain’_ what supposedly happened just go! I don’t want to see you unless it’s really necessary!” She turns away unable to look at the lying man.

Wesley sighs, “After you kissed me on Valentine’s Day, I knew that things couldn’t be the same between us. I didn’t want them to be and you know that, so I made this whole plan to make you fall in love with me slowly and without rushing things between us. I know what happened with your ex-boyfriend and I wanted you to have some time to think everything through and be one hundred percent sure that you wanted to be with me–” The words are spilling out of his mouth when Rachel interrupts.

“Yeah, and ignoring me and going out with another girl really helped.”

Wesley rolls his eyes, frustrated at being unable to finish, “Let me finish please…”

Rachel rolls her eyes at him and Wesley continues, “…But then I had to change my plans. Something happened and I knew I wouldn’t have the time to actually be with you as you deserved. That’s why I didn’t make any move, because I wanted to give you all my time and right now I just can’t offer you that…”

Rachel starts to frown, she’s confused and Wesley can read in her eyes that she wasn’t expecting the conversation to go like that, but she’s still defensive so with a mean tone she practically spits, “But, you have all the time in the world for Ellie…Right?” Wesley sighs and takes a deep breath, as he nods. This is it, the time for the truth.

Rachel’s jaw drop dramatically and with a hysterical voice she begins to scream, “How dare you! How dare you come here and claim to have an explanation and-and! You’re a hypocrite! Go! Just go! I can’t believe you just admitted that!” she stands up and starts pushing Wesley to the door.

Wesley stands up and knowing his time is up, giving one last plea he begins, “My grandmother had a stroke and she–” He says, but the hysteric girl in front of him interrupts and while pushing him, “I’m sorry to hear that, but go and cry on Ellie’s shoulder! I don’t want to see you anymore!”

Wesley, knowing that the brunette is not understanding exclaims, “Ellie is my grandmother!”

Rachel suddenly stops pushing him and her whole expression changes. Wesley takes the two seconds he has while the words he just said sink in the brunette’s mind and he begins telling her the story, “Three weeks ago, a day after Valentine’s Day, I received a call. It was from the hospital, the doctor called and informed me that she had had a stroke. I’m the only family she has, so I had to take care of everything. I went to see her and…She was really sick so I talked to the doctor and once she was out of the hospital, I took her to a nursing home that way she could have people taking care of her all day and night, but I didn’t leave her alone…I’ve been staying with her since then and–”

“Why didn’t you tell me?” Rachel asks interrupting again.

“Because I’m an idiot! I wanted to impress you. I wanted to be the cool guy who impresses the pretty girl, and I thought that lying was a better idea. Cool guys don’t spend their evenings reading books to their grannies and sleeping at a nursing home. I’m sorry…” Wesley says as a matter of explanation. He feels relieved now that the girl in front of him knows the whole truth.

Rachel bursts out laughing. She’s almost crying with laughter. Wesley looks at her and can’t help but ask, “Why are you laughing?”

Rachel, wiping the small tears on her eyes, begins to plead to Wesley, “Please tell me you’re seeing someone else! Please tell me you haven’t been acting like this because your grandmother was sick! Please tell me none of this is true!”

Wesley looks at the brunette and thinks that maybe she lost her mind, so with a confused frown he asks, “Why?”

Rachel looks at him and confesses, “Because all day, I’ve been waiting for this moment to slap you and say how much I hate you for lying and playing with my feelings and now I can’t!”

Wesley lets out a relieved laugh. Rachel’s voice was different, so he knows that at least she believes him, “Does that mean you’re not mad at me anymore?”

Rachel shakes her head, “On the contrary, I’m more mad at you because you didn’t tell me! All this time I thought you weren’t interested and just playing with me and–” Wesley smiles broadly and before the girl can continue saying anything else, he leans over and shuts her up with a sweet kiss.

When they split Rachel, trying to hide the small smile that’s playing around her mouth, flirts, “I’m still mad at you”

Wesley laughs, because he knows that that’s not entirely true, so smiling at her he offers, “Do you think that a dinner with me at Hatfield’s could help to improve your mood?"

Rachel frowns, before her lips curl into a playfully smile, she teases, “Hmmm, I don’t know…Are you going to start acting weird afterwards?” Wesley laughs and pulls Rachel towards the trailer door. His voice softens and in a sweet, serious tone he states, “No I’m just going to ask you to be my girlfriend…”

Rachel stops, “What did you say?” Her brown eyes widen and she loses her smile for a second, stunned.

Wesley, with that crooked smile that Rachel hated and loved so much, promptly says, “You heard me.” Leaving Rachel with a huge grin on her face.

It’s late and the silence of night is overwhelming the blonde who is trying to read a book hoping to get sleepy. She knows she has to go to bed. Tomorrow, she has a very important test, but her mind seems to have different plans. Quinn can’t stop thinking about her boyfriend. After she came home and her roommate told her about him trying to contact her, the blonde tried to call him back immediately, but unfortunately he didn’t answer. Now, she was lying on her bed thinking about him when she should have been studying or dreaming.

The Yale student is deep in thought when her phone starts to buzz making her drop the book from her hands. Still a little startled, she grabs the phone and a smile spreads across her face. The picture of Noah Puckerman wearing his Air Force uniform covers the entire screen. Quinn slides her finger through the screen to accept the video-call and the face of a very relieved man appears across the screen, “Oh, thank God, you’re alright!”

Quinn a little confused asks, “What?”

“I called you like 30 times and you never replied! I was worried! I thought the worst! I thought you didn’t wanna see me ever again! I was about to ask permission to leave and head back home and–” Puck rambles, but his girlfriend interrupts.

“Wait! Can you do that?”

The man at the other side of the phone explains, “Kind of…Well, only if it’s an emergency, and obviously if I’m willing to accept the imposed penalties for misbehavior. Leaving camp before the break date is consider a misconduct and goes on your official record.” Puck says as a matter of explanation.

“Penalties?” Quinn asks and Puck just her a serious nods.

The girl sounds a tad flattered as she questions, “And you were willing to do that for me?”

Puck looks at his girlfriend and gives her a _‘don’t be silly of course I was’_ look causing the blonde to smile warmly at him.

The couple stay silent for a couple of minutes just staring at each other until they both say, “I’m sorry–” Repeating the words at the same time.

Quinn lets out a shy laugh and Puck begins his apology in detail, “Usually I would say _‘you first’_ , but I think that this time I really need to apologize first. I was a jerk and I’m sorry babe…What I said and what I did was not okay. I should have never, ever, reacted the way I did. You’re free to go to all the parties you want and have all the friends you want. I was stupid and I got jealous for no reason, but I want to make sure that you know I trust you completely and that I love you no matter what.”

The blonde starts to wipe the tears that continue to roll down her cheeks, even though she’s trying hard to fight them back. “I’m sorry too Puck…I know you’ve changed and I’m sorry for telling you I had doubts, because that’s not true. I trust you too and I know you’d never try to hurt me intentionally…Though…When I told you that being your girlfriend was hard I was not entirely lying. It is hard, but not because of what I said, but because I’m just afraid of never seeing you again. I know it sounds stupid and childish, but not knowing where you are and what are you doing or if you’re okay sometimes drives me crazy…”

Puck smiles sweetly at the girl he loves, “I know baby, I know. But not even death is going to keep me away from you…”

Quinn winces before saying, “I don’t like when you talk about death, but thank you…I love you.”

“And I love you too even when you hang up my calls” He sends her a crooked smile.

The blonde smiles and Puck continues, “Is Sarah already asleep?”

“Yeah why? You’re not thinking in…?” The blonde asks blushing a little.

Puck laughs, “Well, as much as I would love to do that, I can’t. There are at least five other guys in the room right now and unless you want them to–”

“Oh God! Stop! Stop! Stop!” Quinn yells, embarrassingly hiding her now bright red face under her pillow.

Puck bursts out laughing and winks, “Rain check?”

Quinn blushes from head to toe and while whispering an _‘Oh God!’_. Puck laughs and continuing his first idea, he returns to his original point, “I was asking you about your roommate because I want you to do something for me…”

The former Cheerio smiles, “What do you want?”

Puck, with a huge grin on his face begins giving his beautiful girlfriend instructions, “I want you to walk out the room and go to the roof.”

Quinn laughs, because of the crazy idea her boyfriend just suggested, “Are you out of your mind? It’s cold outside.”

Puckerman smiles, “Put on a sweater or something, but I really need you to do this…Please?”

Quinn trying to humor her military boyfriend starts putting on her slippers and a Yale hoodie; she walks out the room and makes her way to the roof of the small building.

After some minutes the man on the other side of phone asks, “Are you there?” Quinn responds with a _‘Yes’,_ not really getting why she needs to be on the roof for whatever Puck has in mind, she jokes, “Yeah, I’m here. Now what? Do you want me to jump or what?” ** **  
****

Puck chuckles, “Babe, you’re killing the romantic vibe! Be good!"

“Okay, fine! What do you want me to do?”

Puck smiles through the phone, giving her more mysterious instructions, “Look up…”

While the blonde does what he told her to do, Puck questions, “Can you see the moon?”

Quinn simply nods her head, her short blonde bob shakes along with her movements, she already knows what her boyfriend is doing. Puck continues, “Well, I’m looking at the same moon right now, so it’s like we’re together in the same place and sharing the same view…”

Quinn lets out a small _‘Gosh!’_ while Puck tries to continue explaining his point, “I want you to look at the moon every time you feel alone, or every time you miss me, because somewhere…and I promise you this…I’ll be looking at the same moon too and thinking about you and wishing to be by your side…”

The tears return to Quinn’s green eyes. She hates, but at the same time loves, when Puck is in his romantic sappy self. “I love you, you idiot!” Quinn exclaims and Puck laughs. He knows she is only saying it out of love. The blonde continues, “You know I hate when you’re in this sappy mood! You always make me cry!"

Puck just says, “I love you”

Quinn sighs and smiling she keeps her eyes fixed to the moon until the humming of a song distracts her.

Puck starts to sing, “ _At night when the stars light up my room I sit by myself talking to the moon. Trying to get to you in hopes you’re on the other side talking to me too or am I a fool who sits alone talking to the moon?”_

Quinn looking back at her phone asks, “What are you doing?”

The man in uniform shrugs and simply tells his love, “Serenading you…” as a matter of explanation. Quinn smiles broadly thinking to herself how much she loves this man. She just sits back looking at her lover softly singing to her and making funny faces causing them both to laugh. She knows now more than ever that this is what she wants, and she will do whatever it takes to make it work.

Steam rolls around in the small apartment bathroom. The foggy glass shower door slowly opens and tan arms reach out grabbing a red towel. Wrapping the towel around her torso, Santana steps out of the stand up shower and wrings the water out of her hair. Walking over the sink, the brunette lets out a deep sigh before wiping the condensation from the mirror with her left hand and looking into her reflection. She rolls her neck and shoulders trying to release the tension there. The shower turned out to be a good solution to her anger. Letting the heat of the water soak in her skin as it rolled down her body caused her to relax and gave her time to think the whole fight over in her head.

Looking down to her shaky hands the Latina lets out another sigh. She hates fighting with Brittany more than anything. Something about it doesn’t sit right in her stomach. Looking back on her audition, she tries to put everything in perspective. Racking her brain, trying to remember the interaction with the other actress and to see how her blonde could have interpreted it as her flirting, or even worst as Santana liking the attention. The only attention she liked, or wanted, was from her girlfriend. Putting the pieces together she mumbles, _‘Shit’_ under her breath knowing she needs to hurry and exit the bathroom and talk to Brittany again to apologize.

Santana quickly runs the towel over her caramel skin, drying off. She turns and picks up a pair of black spandex shorts and a white thick strapped tank top that she had set on top of the towel rack before slipping into the shower. She slips into clean clothes and brushes out her long raven locks before pulling it up into a messy bun. The brunette takes  two steps to the white four paneled door and twists the bronze knob, opening the door as the steam rolls out in a fog around her. Once in the bedroom, Santana quickly throws her dirty clothes across the room hoping they land somewhere close to the dirty laundry basket. Then, she runs out of the bedroom not sticking around to see where her clothes lands.

She walks down the short hallway and into the living room where she left Brittany before storming off, but she’s met with an empty room. She turns her head to the right, looking over the breakfast bar into the kitchen, which is empty as well. With scrunched brows she walks to the last place the blonde could possible be, the dining room; but all she sees is a small wooden dining table, painted white with two empty wickered chairs pushed into the table. Santana’s shoulders deflate realizing that the blonde left the apartment.

Her ears perk up at the sound of the rain hitting the windows. Walking over to the window in the living room she sees that it is pouring down outside. Not knowing where the blonde ran off too, Santana can’t help but worry about Brittany out in the city by herself in the rain. Jogging over to her purse that sits on a table by the front door, she grabs her phone from inside of it and types out a text to her girlfriend. _‘I’m sorry I stormed out…Please just let me know your okay.’_

Only a few seconds pass by before she gets a short text in return that reads ‘ _I’m okay’_. Letting out a long disappointed sigh she tosses her phone down on the breakfast bar and smoothing out her shirt, she looks around the house. She’s been in the apartment alone many times before, but something feels different about it now. It feels emptier now. She tries to think of something she could do to pass the time while she waits for the blonde return.

Santana knows now what she had done wrong and should couldn’t just sit there patiently and wait for her girlfriend to come home. She needed Brittany to hurry up and come back soon so she can apologize. Of course she didn’t want the other woman who was hitting on her, heck, she didn’t even realize the woman was flirting with her, but now that she tried to put herself in Brittany’s shoes she could see why her girlfriend had gotten so upset. She shouldn’t have overlooked the woman’s advances. She should’ve paid more attention and put the girl in her place when she kept touching her. Feeling the guilt set in even more, Santana gets an idea and starts to make dinner.

After looking through the cabinets and refrigerator to make sure they had all the right ingredients needed, the brown eyed woman decides on making Brittany’s favorite dish, shrimp stir fry. Before she starts cooking she rifles through one of their drawers in the kitchen pulling out two long stemmed candles. _‘What better way to apologize than a romantic meal, right?’_ She thinks to herself. Setting the candles in the metal bases and sitting them on the dining table.

After chopping up and sauteing the broccoli, onions, green and red peppers, She moves onto the shrimp. Pulling out a bag of frozen deveined large, thawed, and peeled shrimp, she dumps them in the frying pan with the stir fry letting it cook for about two minutes. Then after adding some garlic, she transfers the finished product to two white glass plates.

Walking with the two plates in her hand to the table, she goes to set them down when she hears the apartment door swing open. Looking up from the table, she sees Brittany standing by the now closed front door, chewing on her bottom lip. “Hey…” She speaks softly.

“Hey…” Brittany mumbles quietly in respond.

“I’m so sorry!” The two women blurt out at the same time. Gaining a small laugh from both of them. Looking at each other bashfully Santana speaks up, “Sorry, you first.”

Brittany drops her gym bag off her shoulder and onto the floor. Leaving it there she steps a step closer to the other woman, “San, I’m really sorry. You were right. I should trust you, and I do! I know you would never cheat on me.” Looking down at her feet ashamed she continues in a soft mumble, “I don’t know why I even said that.” Casting her blue eyes back up to soft brown ones, “I guess I just got insecure because that actress was hitting on you, and she was beautiful and I kept thinking how much better than me, she probably is, and it made me jealous thinking you might want someone like her. Someone talented and beautiful–”

Santana takes a step towards the blonde closing the distance between them, “But Britt, you are talented and beautiful, I don’t want anyone else. I love you, and only you. You were right though, I didn’t do anything to stop her, and I am so sorry for that. But, and this is in no way an excuse, I honestly didn’t even realize then that she was flirting with me because, Britt, I don’t notice any other women but you. I didn’t notice that she was hitting on me because she wasn’t you. You’re all I want. All I’ve ever wanted. You’re everything to me and I’m sorry if I haven’t been showing that to you to make you feel any insecurities. I really want you to know that …You’re it Britt. You’re the one, my one true love.”

The brunette sucks in a deep breath trying to keep back the emotional tears threatening to escape her eyes. She feels like she is rambling and wonders if she is even making any sense. “Now, you know I’m not the best as showing my feelings. Obviously, that’s what got us here.” She breathes out an airy chuckle. “I’ve always been best as explaining myself through song.” She grabs Brittany’s right hand with her left and walks the blonde to sit on one of the stools in front of the breakfast bar. “So I found the perfect song to kind of express myself and I hope it shows you exactly how I feel.” With a small smile she turns her back to the dancer and walks over to her iHome dock and presses play before turning around and beginning to explain herself to her girlfriend in song. ** **  
****

_(Santana)_ … _I can’t buy your love, don’t even wanna try. Sometimes the truth won’t make you happy, still I’m not gonna lie. But don’t ever question if my heart beats only for you, it beats only for you…_

Brown eyes look deep into the mesmerizing blue ones staring back at her. With her brows scrunched together she continues to sing the words of the song thinking how true they were to her own personality. She knows she isn’t the best at always showing her feelings; and that she can be a bit abrasive sometimes, but she needs the blonde to know that she lives and breathes because of her.

_(Santana)…I know I’m far from perfect, nothin’ like your entourage I can’t grant you any wishes, I won’t promise you the stars. But don’t ever question if my heart beats only for you, it beats only for you…_

Bringing a hand to hold to her stomach, she belts out the next notes feeling the emotion of the song hitting so close to home. She closes her eyes and sings.

_(Santana)…Cause when you’ve given up. When no matter what you do it’s never good enough. When you never thought that it could ever get this tough that’s when you feel my kind of love…_

Santana takes a deep breath and opens her eyes, looking back to the blonde and loving the smile she is wearing; causing her to smile too when she sees her lover’s tongue slip out and running over her bottom lip before biting it to keep it from quivering with the emotions she is overloaded with from watching the Latina sing to her.

_(Santana)…And when you’re crying out. When you fall and then can’t pick your happy off the ground When the friends you thought you had haven’t stuck around. That’s when you feel my kind of love…_

The brunette has to fight back her tears to continue singing. Feeling her heart pounding in her chest, she shakes her head and leans into the notes she’s singing. Raising her hand to her chest to emphasize the beating she feels there for her girlfriend.

_(Santana)…You won’t see me at the parties, I guess I’m just no fun. I won’t be turning up the radio singing, “Baby You’re The One” but don’t ever question if my heart beats only for you, it beats only for you…_

She shakes her head and looks down at the floor as she sings the next verse, knowing how true the lyrics are and how ashamed she is that she ever treated her lover in such ways; no matter how many times she told herself she never would.

_(Santana)…I know sometimes I get angry, and I say what I don’t mean. I know I keep my heart protected, far away from my sleeve, but don’t ever question if my heart beats only for you, it beats only for you…_

As Santana sings her heart out putting every ounce of emotion she has into the song she moves her arms around in emphasis; hoping her point was getting across the her girlfriend.

_(Santana)…’Cause when you’ve given up. When no matter what you do it’s never good enough. When you never thought that it could ever get this tough, that’s when you feel my kind of love…_

She knew she could be bitchy and harsh to people, but she was promising the other woman that from now on she would make sure she always felt loved; and that Santana would always be there for her so Brittany never had to have any other doubts. The Latina takes a step closer to her girlfriend picking up one of her hands and holding it in her own. Looking right into her eyes as she continues to sing.

_(Santana)…And when you’re crying out. When you’ve fallen and can’t pick your happy off the ground, when the friends you thought you had haven’t stuck around that’s when you feel my kind of love…_

She brings a pale hand up to her chest as she places a tan one on the taller woman’s chest. She wants to feel closer to her lover and hopes Brittany was understanding the depth of her love, as she presses her lover’s hand closer to her chest to feel her rapidly beating heart. She finishes the song in a softer voice.

_(Santana)…’Cause when you’ve given up. When no matter what you do it’s never good enough. When you never thought that it could ever get this tough that’s when you feel my kind of love…_

After finishing the song Santana drops her hold on the blonde’s hand and hers to the other woman’s chest. Clearing her throat she dares to speak again, “I love you so, so, much Britt. And I hope you know how truly sorry I am. It’s my job to make you feel loved and wanted; I am so sorry if I have been failing at that. but from now on I promise to remind you everyday how crazy in love with you I am. I love every single thing about you Brittany S. Pierce, and I am so lucky to be able to call you mine. No one else compares to you.” Santana lets out a breath she didn’t realize she was holding and looks into swirling blues eyes.

By now Brittany’s heart felt like it could burst from her chest. Looking at her girlfriend now she wonders how she could have ever questioned the brunette. Feeling really stup–no not stupid because they don’t use that word, feeling ashamed, for questioning Santana’s love for her, she looks away from the brunette, not knowing how to say she was sorry for not trusting her. When she looks over her girlfriend’s shoulder she sees the plates full of food and the lit white, candles flickering in the dining area.

Santana follows Brittany’s gaze to see what she was looking and sighs saying, “Great! Now our food is cold. God, I’m sorry! I was trying to be romantic and make your favorite with the candles and now it’s ruined. I’m sorry I can–”

Brittany leans over and cuts her off with a kiss, “Shut up and stop apologizing.” Both of their smiles grew and they both lean in for another kiss mumbling ‘ _I love you’_ into the other woman’s lips.

When Blaine arrives at the loft from the gym he stops at the metal closed door to look for his keys. He’s exhausted and starving; and all he wants to do is take a nice hot shower then go to sleep. When he finds the key and enters the small apartment, the delicious smell of the food Kurt is preparing finds it’s way into his nostrils. “Hey honey!” Kurt gushes smiling broadly from the kitchen. “I made dinner!”

Blaine walks in, leaving his gym bag by the door he stutters, “I-I can see that.”

The food smells delicious and Blaine’s stomach rumbles because he hasn’t eaten anything all day. The hazel-eyed man walks and kissing his fiance’s cheek asks, “What did you make?”

Kurt turns around and kisses his man on the lips replying enthusiastically, “A chicken linguini, smothered in cheese sauce. And to top it off, a tad bit of freshly grated parmesan cheese!” ** **  
****

Blaine smiles, but all he can think about is how many calories are in one bowl of that delicious cheesy pasta. He doesn’t know the exact number, but he knows it’s too much for him to eat if he wants to actually lose weight.

“I’ll grab you a bowl and then we can sit down and eat together.’ Kurt tells him with an extremely happy smile covering his face as he heads over to the cabinet.

“No!” Blaine exclaims immediately, which makes Kurt stop in his tracks. “I mean…No thank you. I’m really not that hungry…” He backtracked. Not wanting to hurt his sensitive fiance.

“Oh okay. Are you feeling okay?” Kurt questions him, sounding uneasy.

Blaine tries to find an excuses, unable to tell Kurt what was really going on, “Yeah I’m fine…Just tired and sweaty. Quinn called so I didn’t really have time to take a shower in the gym” The short man answers. “I’ll just take this.” He says while picking up a banana from the table bowl.

“That’s not dinner Blaine! You need to eat something else!” The worried man tells his fiance, grabbing a bowl from the cabinet.

“No, I really don’t want pasta. I think I’m just going to take a shower and head to bed…” Blaine mumbles a bit irritated starting to make his way down the hallway. Kurt looks at him, completely stunned with the empty bowl hanging loosely in his hands and asks his lover, a little frustrated. “You’re a little grumpy, don’t you think?”

“Sorry…You’re right” Blaine replies immediately “I’m just tired, it was a long day. Don’t worry, I ate something before hitting the gym, so I’m still full. I’m fine.” He hates lying to Kurt, but he can feel the anxiety rising in his chest, and his brain screaming to him, telling him he really can’t eat all those carbs. No matter how much Kurt’s puppy dog eyes were getting to him.

“Okay,” Kurt says deciding to let the food subject go. “But, before you go, what did Quinn want?” The always gossiping Kurt, asks out of curiosity .

“Tina’s number.” Blaine replies while peeling the banana.

“When I gave her your number she told me that Puck told her that Tina’s dating a soldier…Did you know that?” The blue eyed man tilts his head to the side.

Blaine gives his head a simple nod, while grabbing a bite of his banana. Kurt frowns, “Why didn’t you tell me?"

The shorter man still with his mouth full replies, “Beca-Because every time I talk about Tina you make your _‘I’m not interested’_ face, besides I didn’t know if it that was true or if she was just making it up. It’s Tina after all…”

Kurt laughs, “Well, yeah, you have a point, and just for the record, I don’t make any _‘I’m not interested’_ face. It’s just that I still feel uncomfortable about the fact she had a crush on you. It’s creepy and I don’t like it…"

“I know,” Blaine laughs over the thought. He finishes the rest of his banana before walking the short distance to the trash can and throwing away the peel. Looking over his shoulder to his fiance, “Well…I’ll go take a quick shower okay?” He excuses himself, trying to make an escape from the aroma of the fatty pasta.

The cook turns around to return to fixing his meal; now for only one person. “Okay, I’ll be waiting for you in bed after eating”

Blaine gives Kurt a smile before making his way down the hallway to the bathroom.

Sam is waiting for the clock to strike one p.m. so he can start Glee Club. He’s sitting on one of the chairs at the WMHS auditorium and writing down some notes to kill some time while his students arrive. The band is already there and setting up their instruments. After some minutes, two kids enter the stage. Sam looks up from his paper and sees Ryder and Jake setting their bags on the left side of the stage. They are wearing the same clothes, so he assumes they are going to perform. The new Glee coach speaks up, “Hi, guys! I’m glad to see you’re ready to present your duet! Let’s just wait for the rest of the kids to join us so we can all enjoy the incredible performance, I’m sure you guys prepared.”

Ryder, not knowing what to say, starts stuttering, “Ummm we-we kind of…” Jake laughs, helping his friend steps in, “We didn’t prepare a duet Sam. We wanted to, but we didn’t.”

Sam frowns, a bit confused, “But, why? You two are the only ones who haven’t performed a duet…That was the assignment, a duet about trust.”

“Yeah we know, but we found this really amazing _‘trust’_ song that reflects the soul and spirit of the Glee Club, what we used to be, so we changed the idea and we decided to make a group number instead.” Jake pleads his case to the young teacher.

Marley walks onto the stage, “Sorry for interrupting, and yes Sam, we really learned the assignment. And since this week was all about trusting in each other and learning to be a team again; we decided to prepare a group number for you. Jake and Ryder picked the song and they are going to sing most of it, so it’s like their duet, but we really, really wanted to sing all together”

As the girl finishes talking, the rest of the Glee Club comes on the stage all wearing similar clothes, yellow t-shirts and blue jeans. Sam smiles proudly at his students and gives them their cue to start, “Okay, it’s fine. Let’s see what you got!” Ryder smiles and snapping his fingers he points to the band to start with the music.

_(Jake and Ryder)…I think I caught a glimpse of life without friends, bitter, empty, hollow, dark and lonely. We never meant to hurt each other, so can’t we trust again? And take it as a chance to keep on growing…_

Jake and Ryder stand in the middle of the stage singing as the other ten members dance around them.

_(Jake and Ryder)…I don’t know why it doesn’t come easy, but I know that we could be happy. If we’d only learn to love…_

Sam smiles broadly as he starts to understand why the kids chose that song. The lyrics are amazing and the music truly reflects the soul of the Glee Club. Excited, he stands up and starts to clap along the beat of the song while the kids keep dancing.

_(All the Glee Club)…Oh, oh we need each other, so what’s the fighting for? Oh, oh we need each other, please don’t close the door. Oh, oh we need each other through all the highs and lows. Oh, oh we need each other, cuz no one’s meant to be alone…_

Out in L.A. Rachel and Wesley walk hand in hand into an old red brick building. They weave through the other occupants in the building down a tiled hallway. Stopping at the fifth door, Wesley knocks quietly before pushing the door open and walking in and closing the door behind Rachel and him. The compassionate movie star walks over to a small white haired lady and kisses her cheek. Taking a seat next to the old lady, Wesley looks over to Rachel, who is giving him a soft smile back, he motions for her to come over to him. The brunette walks the short distance to stand next to her man. She extends her arm out to Wes’s grandmother Ellie, when he introduces them. Sitting back in a chair between the two, she can’t help but let her eyes stare a little longer on the gorgeous man as he interacts with the elderly lady thinking how he couldn’t get any more perfect.

_(All the Glee Club)…Life revolves around the need of having someone. Causing every complicated feeling. Oh and I don’t want to lose you, so there is nothing wrong with telling me what you need to keep our love strong…_

Small rays peek through the clouds and start to warm up a little the weather at the big old city. Kurt and Blaine walk out the doors of NYADA and lace their fingers together as they walk hand in hand through the streets of New York. The boys turn around the corner and Blaine points to the park that can be seen in the distance. Kurt smiles at his lover and while walking the blue-eyed guy starts pulling on his fiance’s hand to stop at a Pick a Bagel before reaching the park. Blaine smiles while Kurt enters the store. When the boy emerges he’s carrying a paper bag with some bagels inside offering one to the hazel-eyed guy as soon as he reaches him. Blaine shakes his head and Kurt just shrugs as they keep walking.

They reach the park and while Kurt is clapping lively to a jazz band playing in the middle of the park, Blaine keeps looking at him. On his face is evident the internal struggle he is facing. One side of him knows he can trust his fiance, but the other side is afraid to admit he has a problem. Kurt senses his fiance looking at him and turns around flashing him a sweet smile. Blaine smiles back and kisses him on the cheek.

_(Marley and Kitty)…It’s just a part of being a family taking the good with the bad and the ugly, if we could only learn to love…_

Marley and Kitty walk to the middle of the stage and sing their verse together while the rest of their friends dance around the stage, Unique runs to pull their teacher toward the stage so he can join them.

_(All the Glee Club)…Oh, oh we need each other, so what’s the fighting for? Oh, oh we need each other, please don’t close the door. Oh, oh we need each other through all the highs and lows. Oh, oh we need each other…I don’t want to be alone…_

The L.A. sun beats down on the two women walking hand in hand around The Arboretum of Los Angeles County. Brittany and Santana walk down aisles full of peonies. Brittany eyes Santana curiously as she watches the brunette look over her shoulder and all around them, then quickly reaches over and picks one of the flowers. The blonde quirks a brow at her, wondering why she picked the flower that she wasn’t even suppose to touch, but her question is answered when Santana leans over; brushing away a few straw golden locks from her girlfriend’s eyes, and tucks it behind her ear. Then she brings her left hand up and places the flower in Brittany’s beautiful blonde hair. With a blush Brittany smiles back to the Latina and leans in kissing soft lips.

They continue to walk around the beautiful arboretum, eventually stopping in front of a waterfall. Sitting on a rock by the water the two women curl up into each others embrace. Brittany runs her hand through the water then turning in tan arms she looks into brown eyes. The dancer brings her wet hand and runs her finger over Santana’s nose, causing water to drip from her fingers onto the Latina’s face. The brunette’s nose scrunches in response causing both women to burst out in laughter.

_(All the Glee Club & Sam)…Oh, Oh we need each other, fathers and mothers. Oh, oh we need each other, all your sisters and brothers. Oh, oh we need each other, we need friends and lovers. Oh, Oh we need each other…Well I need you, you need me, cuz that’s the way it’s meant to be. I need you, we need each other…I don’t want to be alone…_

The Glee Club members, and Sam dance their way across the stage while belting out the lyrics to the song with smiles on their faces. Looking up to the ceiling, they all raise their arms up as dozens of balloons fall all around them; causing some of them to stop singing in laughter. Sam and all of the kids are picking partners and swinging them around dancing. They are all lost in the song until a bright light shines into the darkness of the auditorium as the back door swings open. ** **  
****

_(Sam)…Well I need you, you need me, cuz that’s the way it’s meant to be. I need you, we need each other…I don’t want to be alone…_

The blonde teacher looks away from his students. He is dancing and singing along with them and sees Mercedes standing in the doorway smiling as she watches his interaction with the kids. Sending her a quick crooked smile, he sings the last verse of the song.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	4. Promotion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on the Glee Fan Project...The Glee kids were having problems with each other, and regionals is just around the corner, so Sam decided to make the week’s assignment about Trust. But apparently the kids were not the only ones that needed to learn about trust. Brittany got jealous of an actress who was hitting on Santana and they had a big fight, then later they made up with a song and a very romantic dinner ...Awww. Quinn and Puck had a virtual fight too and Quinn called Tina to ask for advice...Did we mention Tina has a military boyfriend too? Weird right? Rachel found out Wesley was lying and dating a girl named Ellie, but everything was a misunderstanding because Ellie is just Wesley’s sick granny...Isn’t he adorable? Blaine’s self-image issues are back and he didn’t tell Kurt about it...Is this trouble in paradise? Anyways, in the end Sam’s lesson on trying to get the Glee Club to trust each other backfired on him and brought up his own trust issues with Mercedes...Yikes!...And that’s what you missed on Glee!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here the fourth episode! Look for the links for the intro video and the Episode 4 playlist at the top of this episode. We encourage you to read the episodes with the playlist playing so you can enjoy all the songs. Remember that we wrote the characters singing these songs with their own vocal arrangements in mind that’s why some of these songs are covers and some are the originals. We hope you enjoy them!

[Episode 4 playlist](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv_rvGfxbXKPy-iLyHQwlISOnCw-oy_OX)

[Intro Video](http://gleefanproject.tumblr.com/post/108922559446/previously-on-the-glee-fan-project-the-glee-kids)

****** **

The view of Manhattan from the windows of the meeting’s room is spectacular. The first rays of the sun filter through the glass walls and illuminate the room. The day is just starting and the people entering the room are taking their respective seats. A blonde woman in her forties is waiting there, already seated at the head chair. After all the _‘good mornings’_ are exchanged and once everyone has a proper cup of coffee in front of them, the woman stands up and says, “I’m sorry to have called you all in this early hour. I know we officially start in an hour, but we just received the invitation for this fall’s New York Fashion Week and though I know the event isn’t until June, we need to start working. We’re Vogue.com people! We need to have everything ready before the press even starts to talk about it!”

The people gathered around the glass table listen intently and the blonde continues, “From now on, we’ll be having two meetings a week. One to talk about the new trends and the weekly articles and another one to discuss the New York Fashion Week event and help our new director”

A boy seated in the extreme left corner is taking notes. He’s typing frantically on the laptop in front of him and every now and then makes an occasional note in one of the several notebooks spread in front of him. He loves the fashion world and wants to learn all he can from his internship experience, so he’s trying to catch up on everything they’re saying because he knows this is the place for him to learn the most.

One of the writers raises her hand and asks the blonde, “Isabelle, last year’s director of the New York Fashion Week was Dylan and unfortunately, he’s not working with us anymore. You did great on February, but who’s going to take care of June’s event?”

Isabelle Wright smiles. “That’s exactly why I called you all today. You all know that the Fashion Week events are our biggest assets. I was able to take care of February’s show, but since we also have the release of wool fashion, we’ll need to have someone else in charge of June’s show. That’s why I’ve decided to promote some people this week.”

Designers, writers, interns and editors all look at each other; wondering who would be the lucky man or woman to get the promotion. Isabelle continues, “You know that covering that event is a big deal for Vogue.com, so the person who receives this honor will have to work very hard to fill Dylan’s shoes.”

One of the designers, a very quirky character, raises his hand and asks, “Can you tell us who’s going to be promoted? Because everyone in this table is a candidate.” he goes on, “‘Because I can’t, I mean, we can’t” he adds pointing to the two guys and two girls seated next to him. “We have a lot of work already lined up for the next couple of months without adding the fashion week.”

Isabelle smiles, “Yeah, I know we all have a lot of work, and you’re right. Everyone in here, except the designers, are candidates, but I can’t tell you who’s going to get the job. I still need to talk to some people, but you all will find out by the end of the week. So far, I have someone in mind who I believe could be the ideal candidate, but I won’t say much. You just need to know that this person has shown great expertise in this area for a while now and I believe that with some help from me and the other editors, this person can be ready to take on that responsibility.”

The whole table turns around and stares at the particular member who hasn’t stopped typing and taking notes. Isabelle didn’t need to say the name out loud. Everyone there already knew he was the first and probably only candidate.

Isabelle smiles and getting down business says, “Okay, so for this week, I need you all focused on everything, okay? I need multitaskers. We have the Miuccia Prada fashion show at Milan, right?” The blonde quizzes her staff and one of the girls there confirms, “Perfect! I hope Anastasha has arrived safe and sound there. Miles, please make sure to call her later. Shaun check that we have everything ready for the Dior photoshoot. I talked to Dimitri, and the trendy columns are already checked and approved. So I think it’s safe to say that we can breath for now and start preparing ourselves for the chaos to come in the following months”

They all laugh and with a smile Isabelle wraps up their meeting, “Okay, then I’ll see you all on Friday after lunch for our new meeting” The group breaks off into their own conversations and starts to walk away, emptying the place in the blink of an eye. The guy who was taking notes finally closes his laptop and looks up. The room in now empty and just his boss is standing there looking at him with a hint of tenderness in her eyes.

“I suppose you took all the notes, right Kurt?” Isabelle asks with a sweet smile.

The intern stands and answers his boss in a serious tone, “Yeah I did. I’ll leave the report on your desk in ten minutes”

“Okay, and thank you for coming. I know this was very last minute and you had school. I hope I didn’t get you into trouble.” Isabelle apologizes while standing and picking up her laptop and notes too.

“Don’t worry Isabelle, I asked for permission…Now I’ll write this really quick and see you in your office in ten minutes. This won’t take long, I promise.” Kurt hurries, already heading to the door.

Isabelle smiles proudly at her intern and just whispers, “I know…” Knowing that this man is her most valuable employee so far.

The auditorium is dark, except for the spotlight hitting the piano that sits to the right of the stage. Sitting on the bench, looking over a few sheets of music, is the new Glee Club teacher. Sam lets out a long sigh as he tries to piece out how the club is going to sing this song. Running his right hand through his short spiked dirty blonde hair, he sets the sheet music on the bench next to him and takes out his pen and makes a couple notes on the page.

In the back of the room, a bright light suddenly appears. Squinting his eyes, Sam looks up to see the auditorium’s door being pulled open. As the door closes, he can see the outline of a person walking down the aisles. He quickly looks away from the figure walking towards him and shakes his head before putting his pen down next to his unfinished work. Sam looks back and sees the person walking up the steps to the stage.

Finally, walking into the light, Mercedes shoots Sam a wide smile. “Hey Sam, whatcha doing?”

“What are you doing here?” Sam snaps, the words come out a little more harsh than he had intended. However, he can’t help but feel a little annoyed by the fact Mercedes keeps popping up. It isn’t that he doesn’t want to see her, it was quite the opposite actually. She was starting to show up so much that he caught himself longing for her to show up after a lesson or for his lunch break, but the thing was he knew he shouldn’t be wanting those things.

Mercedes being near him made him think about things he just wasn’t ready to deal with yet. It made him think about things he has been trying to push to the back of his mind and forget. It made him remember the way they used to laugh together, the way her lips felt on his, all the things he felt when he was with her before resurfaced every time she was around. As much as his heart was loving it, his sense of logic was fighting him; knowing that this wasn’t the past and that he couldn’t just get back together with her and hope that things would be alright now because she finally realized this is what she wanted.

No, now things were different. They are different and he needs her to get that, to understand that when she’s around, he can’t think. And he needs to be able to think clearly now. He’s an adult and his decisions are bigger than before. Therefore, when he asked the question, it wasn’t his heart speaking, but he couldn’t take it back or even apologize. So he just sits there with his lips pressed in a tight line waiting for a response.

Seeming to not to notice the hardness in his voice, Mercedes responds sweetly, “I came to see you.”

Sam looks around the empty room before him and his eyes land back on brown ones, with a new distant voice, one he has never used with her, he says, “Why? We saw each other a couple days ago…” He can see the hurt spread across her face and has to look away. He hates that this is how things have to be now, but he needs to distance himself from her or he’ll only end up heartbroken again.

“Why are you doing this? I thought everything was going good between us now?” Mercedes looks to Sam’s green eyes to try and decipher what’s going on. The man in front of her is not the same man she joked and laughed with on Valentine’s day.

Making a short and sharp nod, almost business like, Sam looks away from Mercedes and back to his sheet music as he tries to pretend to be indifferent about the whole situation. “Everything is fine between us.” The blonde says in a voice that doesn’t even convince himself. He draws a couple random, and not needed, notes on his paper and mumbles just loud enough for Mercedes to barely catch, “I just don’t get why you keep showing up at my work.” With his back now turned to his ex, he closes his eyes, mentally giving himself a pep talk, saying this was for the best, no matter how much it was hurting them both.

By now, Mercedes is catching on to what Sam is doing. She knows him better than he knows himself and she can tell, he is trying to push her away and put his walls up. But before he has a chance to build the Great Wall of China around his heart, she takes a leap at her last chance to get a foot in the door. “‘Cause I like seeing you. Sam come on, don’t tell me you don’t feel it too?” She takes a step closer and rests her hand on his shoulder causing his stance to stiffen. “You know we belong together. We always have. Leaving you was stupid, but I’m done pretending that either of us are okay without each other. I wanna be with you Sam.”

Shrugging off her hand and standing up from the piano bench, Sam takes three steps away from his ex-lover trying to get some distance between them. Shaking the fogginess from his head from having her so close, he turns his body back towards her, but his eyes still don’t meet hers as he stumbles over his words, “I….I’m just.” He swallows thickly trying to force the words from the back of his throat. It was like they were determined on not coming out. He shakes his head one more time before putting on a stoic emotionless face as he finally gets the words out, “I’m not so sure that’s what I want anymore.” His face remains like stone even though the words being forced from his lips cut him like a thousand knives.

Mercedes knows exactly what he’s doing, so she takes a couple steps closer to him and looks deep into his green eyes with her soft browns trying to read him. He looks away quickly, knowing he can’t hide his emotions from the diva. Looking to the ground, fighting with himself as tears start to leak from his eyes. He hates how just having her close to him can break him so easily. And just like that his walls are tumbling down as he rants out his feeling to her, trying to rationalize his fears.

“I’m about 90% sure that if I let you back in my life, you’ll just hurt me again. And we really don’t even know each other anymore. I’m not the same boy from high school and you’re not in love with me. You’re in love with who I was, and what we had then, but we are not the same anymore. We’ve grown up. You’ve traveled the world, well the country, and I stopped doing those stupid impressions every minute of the day, and started school. Our lives are just different Mercedes, and I think that right now we’re both very confused. I think that you’re in love with the old version of me and I’m not that guy anymore…”

Mercedes softens at Sam’s words, “Then, let me get to know that guy. Let’s get to know each other again. The new us” She brings a hand up to cup his cheek, wiping away a tear she finds there.

Sam stands there internally struggling with himself. His mind is telling him no, but as he stands there looking into her eyes and hearing her encouraging words his response slips out without a thought, “Okay.”

Smiling at the bright smile that spread across Mercedes face. He can’t help but love this woman no matter how much it scares him, “But only as friends.” He follows up with. He was right when he thought to himself that they can’t just jump back into a relationship; and he was also right when he said that they have changed, but maybe they could start over. Maybe getting to know each other again could help to fix what was broken.

Mercedes smiles at him and looks over at the the piano. She notices the sheet music, “Let me see what you were practicing.” Sam shrugs and walks over to the piano. He picks up the sheets of paper. Then hands her the sheet music says, “Just some songs for the kids”

Mercedes looks at one of the songs and smiles. She loves that song and she thinks that the lyrics just seem to fit the situation they are leaving, so with a brand new smile she adds, “Friends can sing together…Right?”

Sam laughs and nods in agreement. The diva grabs his hand and pulls him to the center of the stage, before walking over to the band sitting on the back of the stage. Then, she hands them the music and nods. The band starts to play as Mercedes makes her way back to the new Glee Club teacher and then she starts to sing, putting  her heart in the song.

_(Mercedes)…Hurry up and wait. So close, but so far away. Everything that you’ve always dreamed of close enough for you to taste, but you just can’t touch…_

Sam stands in the middle of the stage where the spotlight has now moved to. He originally was looking around, wondering who was controlling the lights, but the soulful voice coming from behind him makes him turn around and look at the diva.

_(Mercedes)…You wanna show the world but no one knows your name yet. Wonder when and where and how you’re gonna make it. You know you can if you get the chance in your face and the door keeps slamming. Now you’re feeling more and more frustrated and you’re getting all kind of impatient, waiting we live and we learn to take…_

As the beat picks up Mercedes makes her way around Sam, pretending to sing the lyrics in a rappers fashion. Sam sucks in his lips fighting off the impending smile she is causing, but eventually he gives in as a smile spreads across his face and he starts to bop his head to the beat of the music.

_(Mercedes)…One step at a time there’s no need to rush. It’s like learning to fly or falling in love. It’s gonna happen when it’s supposed to happen that we find the reasons why, one step at a time.._

Sam knows his voice doesn’t fit the song, but trying to be part of the impromptus performance the girl he lo–, his friend is doing, he starts to harmonize the chorus making Mercedes smile broadly while singing.

_(Sam and Mercedes)…You believe and you doubt. You’re confused and got it all figured out. Everything that you always wished for could be yours, should be yours, would be yours if they only knew…_

Mercedes starts to circle Sam as she sings, causing him to turn in circles in the spot he is standing in, to follow her and watch as she spins around singing. He smiles while following her. This is what made him fall in love with her in the first place. The heart and soul she puts into her music, even impromptu performances like this one, she is a natural.

_(Mercedes)…You wanna show the world but no one knows your name yet. Wonder when and where and how you’re gonna make it. You know you can if you get the chance in your face and the door keeps slamming. Now you’re feeling more and more frustrated and you’re getting all kind of impatient, waiting…we live and we learn to take…_

Mercedes stops moving around Sam, causing him to stop as well. Looking into his eyes trying to convey the truth behind the lyrics she is singing. Sam smiles back to brunette and softly sings the chorus too showing that he agrees with her.

_(Mercedes)…One step at a time there’s no need to rush. It’s like learning to fly or falling in love. It’s gonna happen and it’s supposed to happen. That we find the reasons why, one step at a time…_

The diva belts out the next line, holding onto her stomach and closing her eyes letting the music take over her.

_(Mercedes)…When you can’t wait any longer (You can’t wait), but there’s no end in sight (When you need to find the strength). It’s the faith that makes you stronger…The only way we get there is one step at a time…_

Opening her eyes, he is meet with the beautiful green ones she fell for so long ago. Reaching her hand out for Sam’s, they lace their fingers together and sing the ending together.

_(Sam and Mercedes)…Take one step at a time there’s no need to rush. It’s like learning to fly or falling in love. It’s gonna happen and it’s supposed to happen that we find the reasons why, one step at a time. One step at a time there’s no need to rush. It’s like learning to fly or falling in love. It’s gonna happen and it’s supposed to happen. That we find the reasons why, one step at a time._

The music fades out and the two are left standing in the middle of the stage under the spotlight staring at each other. Sam sends the brunette a crooked smile thinking to himself ‘ _one step at a time’_ is his new motto and that maybe they could make it if they just let go and let fate take control.

Rachel is walking from set after finishing up a scene with Blair who plays Savannah in Rachel’s show. The brunette is on her way to Wesley’s trailer to spend their  three hour break together while the crew moves stuff around getting ready for their next big scene. She decides to take the long way around set, enjoying the nice sunny L.A. day. The reason Rachel likes taking the long way is that she gets to see stuff from all the other shows being filmed within the same network.

She is rounding a corner to walk down a line of new sets she hasn’t seen before when she overhears two men talking. She stops in her tracks when she hears the words, “Well I heard Gary will be calling Brandy, this new actress’, publicist today to let her know she got the lead in Perks of Being a Girl and we’ll try to get her here as soon as possible.” Rachel leans closer to the wall and tries to catch more of the private conversation. “And who is she?” One of them asks.

“Santana something, she’s new. I head this is her first big opportunity.” Rachel gasps and quickly raises her hand to cover her mouth. _“Santana?”_ She’s thinks to herself, “ _How many Santana’s could there really be…”_

Rachel is stunned because Santana didn’t even tell her she was auditioning for a role in the new show within _‘her’_ network. _“Why wouldn’t she have told me?”_ Rachel thinks angrily again to herself. _“Because she’s trying to get to me! Of course! She’s trying to mess everything up just like she did with Funny Girl!’_ She pushes off the wall she’s standing by and practically runs to Wes’ trailer.

After pounding on the door like the FBI, Rachel pushes the door, swinging it open to reveal a shocked Wes, who is now looking up from his book. He’s looking at his girlfriend with stunned eyes. He knows the brunette is mad and not knowing what happened he asks worriedly, “Rachel! Are you okay? Did I do something again without realizing it? I’m sorry if I didn’t…I don’t even know what I did this time…” Wesley stands there staring at the obviously upset brunette with wide worried eyes.

“I can’t believe her!” Rachel snaps, crossing her arms across her chest and storming past Wesley and into his trailer. Wes stands there for a second longer with his hand still hanging on the open door. With a confused look, he glances over his shoulder to Rachel and then back to the open door. Hesitantly, he closes the door before walking over to Rachel, who is now sitting on his red sofa. ** **  
****

Scratching the back of his neck, he brings his baby blues up to meet the angry browns of Rachel’s eyes before taking a deep breath. After some seconds, he dares to ask, “So…Who are we talking about?”

Rachel looks up and snaps, “Santana! I can’t believe I actually thought we were becoming such close friends! She’s a back stabber and only thinks of herself! She did this to get to me! I know it, and I know her, and this is totally how Santana works! That little–”

Wes frowns, still confused and carefully he asks, “Umm, okay…What did she do exactly?”

“She betrayed me!” Rachel exclaims.

“Why?”

“Have you walked around the other sets?” The brunette asks

“Yeah…” Wes replies still not following his girlfriend.

“Then surely you’ve seen the new sets they’re building for that new show _‘Perks of Being a Girl’_.” Wesley nods and Rachel continues, “Well, she got the lead role! The lead role Wesley!”

Wesley smiles and not really understanding the source of his girlfriend’s sudden rage he says, “Well that’s great news right?”

Rachel quickly shakes her head, “No, because she didn’t even tell me and–” She hesitates. “Though I don’t think she knows yet, because I overheard two crew members saying they’ll call her publicist to tell her, but still!” She continues, “The thing is that she auditioned for a show within _my_ network! She had tons of other offers, she told me she had all kinds of auditions lined up and here she is, going to work for _my_ network! That isn’t just a coincidence. She planned this because she’s evil!” ** **  
****

Wesley can’t help but let out a small laugh at how cute and irrational Rachel’s rant is, but it quickly dies in his throat went she sends him daggers with her eyes. “Come on Rache, first off, this is not _your_ network. It’s the network where you work, and though I know I don’t know your friend yet, I really don’t believe she did it on purpose. I’m sure it’s a coincidence.” The man says to a frazzled Rachel, trying to bring some sense into his girlfriend’s mind.

Rachel stands up quickly, “Of course she did it on purpose! She’s done this before thousands of times. When I was in Funny Girl, and all throughout high school I’ve had to compete with her! She’s manipulative and she just likes to try to make me think she’s better than me!” Rachel is getting flustered so she takes a breath and looks down to the ground letting her thoughts sink in, quietly mumbling, “Then again, I used to compete with everyone…Everyone except…” She hesitates.

“Finn” Wesley finishes the sentence for her with a soft knowing smile. She simply responds with a small nod. ** **  
****

“Rachel, you are extremely talented, and sometimes your talent makes others jealous so you have to compete with them. But just because someone else is good too, doesn’t mean they’re better. You are Rachel Berry. You’re a star and you’re amazing at what you do and your friend must be good too, in her own way.”

Rachel looks up into her boyfriend’s eyes with a shy smile and silently agrees with him even though in her head she still has her doubts” ** **  
****

“And I think you should be happy for her…If she got the lead role she must be really, really, good. I heard Mr. Jones is behind that show and you know he is very demanding. Rumor has it his auditions are really hard…”

Rachel smiles, but the smile doesn’t touch her ears. Wesley leans in closer to her and presses a kiss to her temple, “So, are you going to tell Santana what you overheard?” Rachel leans her head on his chest, letting out a deep sigh and replies, “I don’t know.”

Blaine is waiting outside one of the endless hallways at NYADA. He just finished his singing class with Mrs. Judkins, and now he’s waiting for his fiance to exit his classroom. The door of the Music Fundamental’s class swings open and a flood of students start to emerge. Blaine leans against the wall in front of the door just waiting for his love to come out, but after some minutes the door closes and Blaine frowns because Kurt never came out.

Still a bit confused, the worried man stops one of Kurt’s classmates and grabs her by the arm saying, “Hi, Jackie”

Jacqueline Young turns around and smiling friendly exclaims, “Oh! Hi Blaine, what’s up? How are you doing?”

Blaine smiles and asks, “Fine thanks, and you?”

Kurt’s classmate smiles, “I’m fine thanks. What is it?”

Blaine frowns, “Ummm…I’m just wondering if you’ve seen Kurt? I was waiting for him but–”

“Oh! He didn’t come to class…” Jackie says immediately as a matter of explanation.

Blaine frowns and inquires, “Are you sure? I mean, we got here together this morning. He was supposed to be here…” He presses. Now even more worried about his fiance’s whereabouts.

Jackie shrugs, “I don’t know if something happened or what, but he wasn’t in class…maybe he just skipped that one?”

Blaine gives her a small smile, trying to convince himself that is what happened, but he knows Kurt would never skip a class. Unless Marc Jacobs is having a sale he couldn’t resist. He let’s go of Jackie’s arm, admitting defeat, “Yeah maybe that’s what happened, I guess I’ll have to call him. Thank you”

The student smiles broadly and while walking away she adds, “Anytime! See you around!”

Blaine takes out his phone from the front pocket of his bag and quickly dials his love’s number. After two rings the missing man picks up and with an excited voice he exclaims, _“Blaine!”_ Blaine smiles when the melodic and sweet voice of his fiance reaches his ears.

“Kurt! Where are you? I was waiting for you outside your Music Fundamental’s class and Jackie told me you missed your class. What happened? We got here together this morning! Why did you leave?” Blaine asks frantically, but relieved to hear his fiance is okay, while making his way through the now crowded hallways to get to his next class on time.

The boy on the other side of the phone gasps before explaining himself, _“Oops! I’m sorry! I forgot to text you! Isabelle called this morning when I was just starting with Ms. July’s class and I had to come to the office”_

“You’re at Vogue?” Blaine asks confused.

 _“Yep! There was a last minute meeting and I asked Madam Tibideaux if I could go, and she said I was free to go, though I’ll have to catch up with all my classes”_ Kurt says through the phone, he let out a tiny sigh. _“…Wow and just thinking about it makes me feel tired.”_

Blaine laughs, “Well, I guess I can help you with Fundamentals of Acting and Forms and Analysis classes since we have those together, but for the other ones you’ll have to ask somebody else…”

_“Thanks honey! I’ll text some of my friends later, but make sure to take a lot of notes for me! The exam is coming soon and I really don’t want to fail! You know forms and analysis is hard for me!”_

“Don’t worry babe! I can help you to study for the exam too, and I’ll take notes for both of us today so you don’t have to worry about that…By the way are you going to stay until late at the office?”

 _“Yeah I guess, we have a lot of work going on right now…why?”_ the blue-eyed man asks.

Blaine arrives to his classroom and while taking a seat in the front rows he explains, “Oh! I just wanted to know because I was planning on hitting the gym after school, but I didn’t know if we were going to see each other for lunch…”

 _“Don’t you think you’re going to gym pretty often?”_ Kurt asks.

Blaine getting a little defensive snaps, “You know I’m just trying to stay fit” Using a harsher voice.

_“I know, I’m sorry okay? I didn’t mean to piss you off”_

Blaine exhales and thinks to himself, _‘What’s wrong with me?’_ While trying to find the words he wants to say to his fiance. “I’m sorry Kurt, I don’t know what’s wrong me lately. I guess I just miss you.”

 _“I miss you too honey, but I’ll see you for dinner, okay?”_ Kurt says smiling through the phone.

Blaine smiles at the thought of some alone time with his love and while the rest of the students crowd the classroom he whispers, “Okay.”

 _“Your class is starting right?”_ Kurt asks his fiance, not wanting him to miss a class as well.

“Yeah.”

_“Okay, then I’ll talk to you later…By the way, don’t buy anything for tonight. On my way home, I’ll stop at Kanomaya…”_

Blaine’s eyes open widely, “Wow, what’s the occasion?” He laughs. They have been together long enough for him to know that when his fiance wants sushi for dinner that means he’s excited about something.

 _“I forgot you know me so well…”_ Kurt says laughing _“I may have some news to share with you.”_ He adds trying to hold back his excitement as he smiles into the phone.

The teacher enters the classroom and Blaine trying to hide his phone whispers, “What is it?”

Kurt laughs loudly through the phone, _“No! I need to share this face to face, see you later tonight!”_

“But–” Blaine immediately starts to complain, but his fiance interrupts him.

_“But nothing! Your class already started, I don’t want you getting in trouble so I’ll see you later! Love you!”_

Blaine finally gives in knowing his fiance is right, he needs to pay attention in class. “Fine! Love you too!”

Kurt laughs sweetly and Blaine cuts the call while his teacher starts to make some notes on the blackboard. The impatient man sits there for a second wondering what it was that would have Kurt so excited. Shaking his head to rid himself of his thoughts, he pulls out his pen and paper and focuses on what the teacher is talking about in the front of the class.

****** **

Brittany and Santana are sitting on their couch watching their DVD set of _Sweet Valley High,_ when there is a knock on their apartment door. Shifting her head off of Brittany’s shoulder, Santana stands up to make her way to the door. Turning the handle and pulling the door open, Santana scrunches her face in disgust, “Gayberry, what are you doing here?”

Rachel looks to Santana confused, “Umm, I’m here for lunch?”

A laugh that sounds more like a scoff escapes Santana’s lips as she shrugs her shoulders and questions the other woman, “And what makes you think we would want to have lunch with you Yentl?”

Rachel’s mouth drops open to respond, but Brittany beats her to it. Jogging from the couch to stand behind Santana, “Oh yeah, I invited her for lunch.” She runs her hand through her golden locks letting it fall over her shoulder. Santana looks over her shoulder to her girlfriend and sees the soft adorable smile she’s wearing and the Latina’s features immediately soften.

“Oh, Okay. I still need to make something though.” Santana leaves the door open as she walks towards the kitchen, not missing the whiplash sounds Rachel is making, but choosing to ignore it for the sake of her girlfriend. _‘If that makes me wiped…Then whatever.’_ She thinks to herself.

“We can just eat sandwiches, right? Those are easy to make.” Brittany looks from Santana to Rachel and whispers, “San still has to make them because I get confused about which side to put the mayo on.” She pauses in thought before continuing, “I know you’re like a big star now, but we don’t have any caviar so is sandwiches, okay?”

Rachel cockes her head to the side in question, but quickly lets it go, learning a long time ago not to try and understand Brittany’s logic. Santana has always been the only person who really understood her and Rachel actually gave her props for that. So she simply smiles and says, “Sandwiches are perfectly fine with me, Brittany.” ** **  
****

Santana quickly makes three sandwiches, two with turkey, lettuce, tomato, and mayonnaise and one with just lettuce, tomato, cheese and mayonnaise. While Brittany and Rachel sit in the living room chatting, the Latina brings their plates to the dining room table and calls the two other women.

“You don’t want to just eat in the living room and continue your show?”

“Oh no, other than the fact the two twin girls are hot, we don’t actually watch the show when it’s on, it’s just what we play when we want to hav–”

“Brittany!” Santana stops her girlfriend’s sentence and Rachel connects the dots and her face turns red. Brittany just shrugs, not realizing what she said wrong. Santana clears her throat and corrects her girlfriend, “Actually Rachel, Britt has a thing about eating at the dining table. Her family always ate at the dinner table together, so we do the same.” She rolls her eyes trying to sound annoyed by the rule, but Rachel can see right through her and can tell that Santana actually loves the new tradition.

“Oh, okay.” Rachel stands up from her seat and walks into the dining room and takes a seat in one of the wicker chairs. Santana goes to pull over one of the barstools since they only have two chairs, but Brittany stops her. “You can sit there San, I’ll take the stool.”

“No, it’s okay Britt, I don’t mind.”

“I know but I want you to. I’ll take the stool.” The blonde insists.

Santana goes to sweetly decline again, but Rachel jumps in, “Could you too be any less cute, please?” Laughing she continues, “Santana just take a seat let the woman be chivalrous and take the stool for you, although I’m wondering why you guys just got a two seater table anyways.”

“Well hobbit, if you haven’t noticed there’s only two of us who live here, that, and I was hoping that meant we wouldn’t ever have lunch dates like these with you.” Santana pulls the stool up next to the table and sits in the other chair letting Brittany have the stool like she wanted.

“So, Rachel…When do we get to meet this new boyfriend of yours? I’m starting to think he doesn’t exist. You know Rachel, it’s really sad to make up boyfriends, I’m sure you’ll find someone.” Brittany says, swallowing a mouthful of food.

Santana has to hold back a laugh as Rachel looks to Brittany in confusion. A lot of people think that when Brittany says things like that it’s because she has a strange mind, or they think she isn’t the brightest crayon in the Crayola box. But really it’s because they just don’t get Brittany’s sense of humor. “I-I didn’t make him up. You guys will meet him. We just have been busy with filming and his sick grandmother.”

Santana starts laughing and brings her left hand to cover her mouth while saying, “Oh, right, the other woman! Man Wesley has a type doesn’t he!?” Casting her eyes over to Rachel she sees the killer looks she is receiving from the other brunette and exclaims, “What?” Trying fake innocences.

“Stop making fun of that. It was a misunderstanding, let it go.” Rachel pleads as Santana just shrugs and goes back to eating her sandwich. ** **  
****

After that, the only sound that can be heard as the three girls fill their stomachs is the constant sound of Santana tapping her foot on the leg of the table.

“San, hun, stop.” Brittany says to Santana.

Looking down at herself she notices that she was tapping her foot again, “Sorry, I didn’t realize I was doing it again.” Rachel looks between the two girls on the other side of the table with a confused look.

“She’s nervous, and when she’s nervous, she taps her foot or snaps her fingers.” Brittany explains.

Rachel looks from Brittany to Santana and asks, “Why are you nervous?” She has a feeling she already knows why.

“Because I haven’t heard about my audition…The one I had a couple weeks ago, it was for a new T.V. show with your network. You haven’t heard anything about the casting for that have you? I’m just wondering because they should’ve called by now, I think.” Santana asks, trying to sound nonchalant.

“I’m sure you got the part, baby.” Brittany smiles to Santana and the Latina eyes shift to her girlfriend’s smiling back to her. ** **  
****

“So, Berry?” Santana raises a perfectly manicured eyebrow.

“No, sorry nothing.” Rachel answers shortly.

“Yeah, okay, whatever no big deal if I don’t get it. I mean I have plenty other options.” Santana shrugs and goes back to picking at her food.

Rachel picks up her sandwich and takes a bite trying to avoid more questions on the topic, swallowing her bite she asks, “So, Brittany, how has the studio been?”

“Oh, well, I don’t really work there. It’s really just a place for me to go to still dance, but since Amy and I have become good friends, she lets me help her out with some of the bigger classes. She’s over booked so I get paid for those ones.”

“Well that’s good. Are you thinking about trying to become an instructor there?”

Brittany just shrugs and tries to change the topic again to get the focus off of her. “Anyways, Rachel, how is your show going?”

The three women continue to talk about Rachel’s show and how Brittany and Santana have been liking L.A. in the past couple of months. Throughout the rest of their lunch together Brittany stays quiet just sitting back and listening to the two actresses talk back in forth while adding in their usual insults. Santana takes notice to how quiet her girlfriend has been and reaches her hand over and squeezes her hand, giving her a soft smile, silently reminding herself to bring it up later.

****** **

Sam and Mercedes are walking down a path in the Schoonover Park. Some light beams are filtering through the branches of the trees surrounding them, creating beautiful patterns along the way. Mercedes turns her head slightly to the right and looks at the boy walking next to her.  “I’m glad you agreed to meet me here.”

The new Glee coach, who was distracted by the birds flying from one branch to the other, returns his attention to the talented girl, “Yeah, I figured it would be nice to get outside now that it’s starting to warm up.”

Mercedes breathes deeply and looks around to the beautiful park before agreeing with the tall blonde man, “Yeah, it’s beautiful today. I think it’s a perfect day to start to get to know each other again…” She side glances at Sam waiting to see his reaction.

Sam looks away, a bit ashamed, and all nervous he starts to stutter, “Mercedes I-I…”

The former Glee diva, knowing the man she has in front of her so well, smiles and while still looking forward she begins, “Okay I’ll go first…” Causing the blonde to just laugh.

“Where to start? Ummm…Well maybe where we left off. You haven’t really asked me about the tour, so I’ll give you that information even if you don’t want to hear it” She adds smiling.

“But, I do want to hear about it…I didn’t ask because–” The blonde stammers.

“Don’t worry Sam…I know…I was just kidding…Okay, well you already know it was successful and everything, but what you don’t know is that I was scared to death, and by scared I mean, literally _‘I want my mommy’_ scared.”

Sam laughs and Mercedes continues, “Lauryn, kept telling me everything was going to be fine, but I was afraid that people wouldn’t like my music. But as soon as I saw the first girl singing along to one of my songs all my fears and doubts vanished. I think the moment I started to enjoy the experience was the moment I started to believe in my talent…”

“You were born a star…” Sam states, trying unsuccessfully to hide the pride in his voice.

“Thanks, you know? Your support was a huge part of all this process, because I knew that somewhere out there you were probably proud of what I was doing…” Sam looks away hiding his red cheeks and Mercedes continues, “Anyways, by my second week I was already into the whole experience and that’s when I discovered that all of you were right and that I was born to be a star…” The diva says.

Sam kicks a small stone he finds on the way and without looking up he confesses, “I read about your tour.”

“Really?” Mercedes asks with a soft smile playing around her lips.

Sam nods, “Yeah, the kids, well Marley and Unique, always talked about you, so we were always aware of your tour’s latest news.”

Mercedes laughs a little and looking over some kids playing on a swing set, “Those kids are amazing, maybe I’ll invite them to my next event. But enough about me for today, now it’s your turn to share something…” Sam hesitates, and Mercedes trying to help adds, “Why don’t you tell me about what happened when you first arrived here.”

Sam smiles at the memory and while they keep walking he turns his head towards Mercedes, “That’s a long story…”

“This park is big enough, and we can always sit down for a while.” The brunette says pointing to the long path in front of them.

“Okay…Well when I got here, I’m not gonna lie, things didn’t look too good for the Glee club. Mr. Schue was still the teacher, but there was no club so you can’t really say he was still the Glee coach. Anyways, I enrolled in the University of Northwestern Ohio and there I met Greg, who turned out to be some important head honcho guy on the board of education for Lima. I told him that some public schools were vanishing the art programs and he said he would help. At first I thought he was just trying to be nice, but it turned out he wasn’t and…Yeah, thanks to him, Sue had to restore the Glee Club…” Sam ended.

“And Mr. Schue?” Mercedes ask, trying to put all the pieces together.

“When the school year was over he received a special invitation to be the Carmel’s new glee coach. I know he didn’t want to abandon McKinley, but we all thought there was no hope there for the club and he has a family now, so he accepted the job offer. When Greg told me he had talked to Principal Sylvester and the Glee Club was going to be restored, it was too late for Mr. Schue to come back. I thought they would just hire a new teacher, but he offered me the job and I agreed…”

“And what about school?” Mercedes asks.

“I changed my shift and I’m at night school.” The blonde says as a matter of explanation.

“That all sounds great Sam. I think that you meeting that Greg guy was a touch of destiny. You were meant to meet that guy to be able to help those kids…But I’ve been wanting to ask you this…Why teaching?”

Sam exhales before answering, “Because I wanted to do something that really meant something, you know? I always admired the way Mr. Schue had this _‘important role’_ in all our lives and how he made such a big difference on who we are now…And I wanted to do that. I wanted to be that ‘ _big difference’_ for someone and when I realized that, I decided to be a teacher…”

“That’s beautiful Sam and you’ll be a great teacher. I think you already are. I’ve seen the way your students look at you, especially the new kids and just so you know…You already are that _‘big difference’_ to so many people Sam, including myself. If you hadn’t posted that video, I wouldn’t be where I am right now…So you were that big difference for me…” Mercedes starts to tear up while she looks straight into big green eyes.

Sam looks away trying to fight back the tiny tears that are threatening to roll down his cheeks, after some minutes he asks, “Do you wanna sit?” pointing to a small bench in front of some playgrounds.

Mercedes nods as they make their way and sit by the bench. The atmosphere between them is now completely different. Sam is confused and he doesn’t know why this conversation with Mercedes is making him have second thoughts about what he said yesterday. Suddenly everything he thought he knew is changing. He can’t help but think to himself that maybe they haven’t changed that much.

Sam is lost in his thought until the sharp cry of pain of a kid brings him back to the to reality. He looks down and a little kid is crying in front of them. His knee is bleeding, but Mercedes is already knelt next to him, digging through her purse and finding a packet of kleenex. He watches on as she uses the water from the water bottle she had in her oversized purse  to clean the little boys wound, while trying to calm him down using her very special sweet voice.

After some minutes a blonde woman appears from behind the bench and picks up her son thanking Mercedes for helping him. When Mercedes sits back on the bench Sam can’t hide the sweet smile that’s spread across his face.

“What?” The diva asks playfully.

“Nothing…”

Mercedes smiles softly and Sam without thinking what his body is doing, he leans over and presses his lips against hers taking the singer by surprise. When Mercedes reacts to the kiss and presses her lips harder against the blonde’s, Sam pulls away and without muttering another word runs away. Mercedes gasps surprised as she sees the silhouette of the blonde man disappearing into the park. A small and playful smile crosses her face as she thinks about what just happened and she can’t help but think that this is progress as she stands there looking in the direction Sam took off in.

****** **

Kurt is standing by the kitchen table taking out the orange clam sashimi, the steamed broccoli appetizer, and the sushi special entree he ordered for them to have dinner. He’s just setting the table when the metal door of the small apartment slides open. A very smiling Blaine walks in and Kurt exclaims, “Hi, there! I thought you’d be home earlier! Dinner is ready!”

Blaine smiles and drops his gym bag by the door. He walks near Kurt and grabs him by the waist before giving him a quick peck on the lips. Kurt smiles and gives him a sweet pat on the chest before asking, “Were you at the gym all afternoon?”

Blaine quickly shakes his head and releases the waist of his fiance. He walks to the table to look at the food Kurt bought before explaining his days events, “No, of course not. After school, I stayed at the auditorium for a couple hours to rehearse for the play”

Kurt smiles and using his playful voice he asks his lover, “Really Mr. Todd? And how was it?” making fun of his new leading role on the school play.

“It was really good Mr.Kelly.” Blaine responds playfully following the game “I cut some throats today…By the way. You missed your rehearsal. I saw some of your castmates working really hard on some numbers and I need to say that, _‘Watch What Happens’_ sounds amazing! Like really, really amazing! The girl playing Katherine has a great voice and she’s really funny.” Blaine praises his fiance.

The blue-eyed man smiles and rolls his eyes playfully at his fiance as he adds, “Yeah, she’s great and I know I missed the rehearsal. I think that tomorrow I’ll have to stay after school to rehearse for a couple of hours. I don’t know how I’m going to do it because my schedule is literally going to get crazier every day. I think that eventually I’ll have to quit the diner…”

Blaine walks back to him and hugs him tenderly as he whispers into Kurt’s ear, “I knew you wouldn’t be able to keep that crazy schedule of yours for too long…”

Kurt chuckles and hits his fiance hard in the chest, making him to bend down pretending to be in pain. Kurt man playfully rolls his eyes and laughing walks to the table and takes a seat in one of the chairs. The shorter man looks up and seeing that he failed to draw the attention of his fiance, sighs and with a big silly pout plastered on his face takes a seat in front of Kurt.

The boys start to eat the delicious food and after some time Blaine puts down his chopsticks and finally asks, “Didn’t you say you had some news to share with me? All day I’ve been thinking about it and it’s driving me crazy! Tell me what is it?”

Kurt smiles and putting down his chopsticks too, asks, “Are you ready?”

Blaine gives him his _‘are you kidding me?’,_ look and then nods eagerly. Kurt laughs unable to contain his excitement and finally lets out. “There’s going to be a promotion at Vogue. They need a director to take care of all the New York Fashion Week for June and so far…We’re all possible candidates”

The hazel-eyed man whips his hands on the table and exclaims excited, “Oh my God! Really? Oh my God! You are **so** going to get it!”

“Don’t get too excited…” Kurt quickly backtracks in an attempt to calm his fiance, “Remember that I’m just an intern and the promotion is to a director, so the odds aren’t exactly in my favor.”

Blaine moves his hands in disagreement and exclaims, “What!? Are you kidding me!? You have the same chances as any of the people there.” ** **  
****

Kurt shakes his head and taking a quick sip to his glass of sparkling water before continuing, “I don’t think so. There are a lot of other guys or girls that can get it…”

Blaine rolls his eyes and defends his fiance from his own self, “Yeah, but they are not as talented as you…”

“You’re saying that just because you love me, but I really don’t think I have a chance. That position is really important and I don’t have the experience required. Well I do, because I’ve been working there for a while, but not the kind I’d need for that job. I’m sure Chad is at the top of Isabelle’s list. He has been there for two years now and he’s super talented and I think that he’s going to get it” Kurt ends, lowering his gaze sadly.

Blaine knowing very well what’s going through his fiance’s mind stands up and walks to stand next to him. Looking at those beautiful blue eyes, he kneels next to him and grabs his pale hand and asks him, “Kurt, do you want that promotion?” Kurt nods and Blaine continues, “Then fight for it! Maybe this Chad guy is good. I don’t know him, but let’s say, that what you’re saying is true and that he’s super talented, but he is not you. He doesn’t have your passion and I’m sure that you are much more talented! And I’m not saying this because I love you, I’m saying this because it’s true! If you want that job, then fight for it! Prove Isabelle who the ideal candidate is! Prove her! You deserve that!”

Kurt exhales and kissing his fiance’s cheek asks, “How?” feeling slightly better after Blaine’s pep talk.

Blaine smiles and standing up, “Well… I know you hate when I do this, but  I can’t help it. It’s in my nature…” he says hitting play on the iPod dock.

_(Blaine)…Pressure’s on, make or break. No matter how high are the stakes. No fear, build strong, Dynamite, number one…_

Blaine starts to sing and dance around the small apartment while Kurt just watches the performance from his chair with a soft smile on his face.

_(Blaine)…Now this is the time to attack and stand tall, together for one and one for all. The fight of your life is before your eyes, there’s no room for second. This is do or die!…_

Blaine seeing that his love is still seating at the table, walks near him and grabs his hand as he helps him to stand up. Kurt stands up and gives Blaine a sweet smile.

_(Blaine)…You gotta want it, you gotta need it. When it’s time to lay it on the line, you gotta feel it, you gotta need it. When you dig down deep so deep, you gotta want it…You gotta want it…_

The shorter man puts his heart in the song trying to use it as a way to inspire and encourage the man he loves. Kurt keeps looking at him with heart eyes.

_(Blaine)…This time, this game. Tonight we’ll fight. Push hard, live strong, the game is just begun…_

Blaine hugs Kurt from behind and grabbing the blue-eyed man’s hand he raises it high to make him fake a champions fist bump into the air causing Kurt to laugh at the silliness of his fiance. ** **  
****

_(Blaine)…Now this is the time to attack and stand tall, together for one and one for all. The fight of your life is before your eyes, there’s no room for second. This is do or die!…_

Blaine with a huge smile stands on the table and sings with Kurt, who is just shaking his head with adoration because this man just can’t stay away from the furniture when performing.

_(Blaine)…You gotta want it, you gotta need it. When it’s time to lay it on the line, you gotta feel it, you gotta need it. When you dig down deep so deep, you gotta want it, you gotta want it…you gotta want it…_

Kurt pulls the hand of his fiance to try and make him step off of the table where the unfinished sushi plates are still waiting to be cleaned. Blaine doesn’t stop singing and climbs down from the table with a huge jump.

 _(Blaine)…In the end victory will be won, but only for the champion. And now there’s no holding back no no. ‘Cause boy you gotta want it! You gotta need it. When it’s time to lay it on the line, you gotta feel it, you gotta need it. When you dig down deep so deep, you gotta want it, you gotta need it. When it’s time to lay it on the line, you gotta feel it, you gotta need it. When you dig down deep so deep…You gotta want it…_ ****  
****

Blaine sings the last part of the song and Kurt can’t stop smiling. As much as he tries to deny it, he really loves this impromptus performances and Blaine always seems to know the way into his heart.

_(Blaine)…Victory will be won, but only for the champion. And now there’s no holding back no no, you gotta want it._

When the song comes to an end, Blaine smiles proudly at the man in front of him, who can’t stop smiling. Kurt walks closer and grabs both his fiance’s hands. He laces their fingers together. Blaine starts to ask, “Did you–” But Kurt shuts him up with a quick kiss and says, “Shhhh…Thanks for that. I didn’t like it. I loved it. I’m surprised our neighbors haven’t complained yet with all of these impromptus performances, but I don’t care. That’s what I needed to hear and I’ll try to get that promotion. I’ll really try but…” he begins and Blaine raises a questioning brow asking, “but what?”

Kurt smiles and continues, “You’ll have to help me with school!” causing Blaine to burst out laughing and lean in to kiss the man he loves once again while whispering “Count on it!”

Brittany stands by the apartment door and watches as Rachel walks down the hallway and rounds the corner towards the elevator. She steps back into the apartment, closing and locking the door behind her. Walking over to the breakfast bar, she leans her elbows on the counter and her chin in the palm of her right hand. She stands there quietly watching as her girlfriend puts the few dishes they used for lunch into the dishwasher.

After closing the door to the dishwasher and turning it on, Santana drys her hands off on a dish towel. She lays the hand towel on the counter and looks up to her girlfriend. “You okay? You’ve been kind of quiet tonight.”

Shrugging, Brittany stands up and starts walking towards the bedroom, “Yeah, I’m fine. I’m just going to take a quick shower.”

Santana runs around the wall that divides the kitchen from the rest of the apartment and softly reaches for Brittany’s hand. “Wait!” The blonde stops in her tracks and slowly turns around without meeting the brunettes eyes. “Okay, first of all Britt, you took a shower this morning so I know you trying to avoid this conversation because we haven’t really done much today for you to need to take another one…Yet.” She sends her girlfriend a wink to let her know she isn’t mad, “Second of all, I know you better than anyone B, and I know you have something going on in that genius mind of yours, but you don’t want to talk about it yet, and I respect that. But we will talk about it okay? When you’re ready, I’m all ears.”

Brittany finally lets her eyes meet the warm browns starting back at her. She feels Santana give her hand a light squeeze and she has to bite her bottom lip to keep herself from smiling. She gives the shorter woman a small nod in understanding that when Brittany was ready she could come to Santana and talk about it. And she would, but not right now. The future sometimes was a scary thing for Brittany for fear of failing, but she had an idea for what she wanted to do she just wasn’t sure she was ready to talk about it out loud. She knew that when she was ready her wonderful girlfriend would listen and would back her up in whatever it was she decided to do. Santana pulls the blonde woman in closer to her and wraps her arms around her waist as the taller woman drapes her arms over her lover’s shoulders holding each other in a tight embrace. They reluctantly pull apart and Santana give the other woman a smirk, “Wanna finish watching Sweet Valley High and get our cuddles on?” Brittany blushes and nods eagerly, dragging the Latina back to the couch and practically sitting on her lap.

****** **

Mercedes sits on the couch at her parents house, flipping through channels trying to pass time and get Sam off her mind. So far, no such luck has prevailed. Ever since Sam pressed his gorgeous lips against hers, she hasn’t be able to stop thinking about him. Finally landing on a documentary on the Discovery Channel about the theories of dark matter, she lets out a long sigh and tosses the remote on the other side of the couch. The diva leans her head back on the couch and stares up at the ceiling. Her mind once again slips to Sam. _‘Why did he have to run away?’_ She thinks to herself.

Soon, she is brought out of her thoughts by the chime of the doorbell. Wondering who it could possible be, she lifts her head up from the back of the couch and looks towards the door. It chimes one more time, causing her to stand up and walk towards the front door. Reluctantly, she opens the door and immediately screams in excitement when she sees five familiar faces standing there. “What! Girls, what are you doing here?” Standing in front of her is a group of  girls, all Mercedes’ childhood friends. However, there’s another face that she recognizes but not from childhood, so with a huge frown on her face she asks. “Sugar?”

The peculiar girl jumps up and down excited and Mercedes, still quite shocked, asks again, “What are you doing with them? I mean, what are you doing here?”

Sugar rolling her eyes, “My daddy had to move to Iowa and I went with him, but now I’m back! Deal with it! Sorry aspergers…”

Mercedes laughs and Leila, one of her friends, quickly gives her reasoning, “Sugar and I go to the same spa.”

The diva’s eyes open wide in understanding and adds, “Well, that explains a lot…anyway, come in! You haven’t told me what you’re doing here?”

Leila says, “Well, after the spam of messages we received a few hours ago about Sam, we decided you needed some girl time and…we’re here to take you out and have some fun…”

“That’s sweet girls, but I’m not really in the mood to go out tonight. I was about to watch a very interesting documentary about dark matter” Mercedes explains, pointing to the television at the end of the room.

“Well, that certainly sounds super interesting” One of the girls adds with sarcasm evident in her pitchy voice.

Mercedes rolls her eyes and trying to decline the invitation, she adds, “Really girls, today is not a good day. I’d rather stay home and–” ** **  
****

Sugar raises her hand to ask for permission to speak and all the girls turn around to look at her. Once she’s sure everyone is paying attention she says, “Thank you! I just want to add something Mercedes. If you’re worried about the money, then don’t worry because my daddy is paying”

“Yes Cedes! Come on! You need to forget about him, even if it’s just for one night”

Sugar shakes her head in agreement before saying, “Yeah you need to forget about him, whoever he is **“**

“Sam” Mercedes gives a chuckle, “You know him.” Causing Sugar to just shrug.

Leila ignores her comment and tries to persuade Mercedes, “Come on! And have fun with us. We will make sure you don’t think about him for tonight.”

“But–” Mercedes starts to say, but one of the girls gets tired and interrupts, “Shut up! We’re going to have some fun and that’s the end of the story! Now go and change your outfit…Because Ms. Mercedes Jones is going to have some fun tonight!”

Mercedes huffs and mutters, “Fine.” Because she knows that arguing with her friends about it is pointless. The diva turns around and while turning off the T.V. asks, “Can I at least ask where we’re going? Don’t think I didn’t notice your choice of outfits”

“To this really cool club, it’s kind of country though!” Sugar exclaims in her cheery, high=pitched voice, clapping excitedly.

Mercedes frowns and Leila asks, “You do have a country outfit, right?”

Mercedes rolls her eyes and snapping her fingers she sassily replies, “Girl! Of course I do! Every diva has an outfit for every occasion.”

The group of girls laugh and Mercedes goes upstairs to change her clothes and get ready to her girls night out. ** **  
****

After some time, Mercedes walks down the stairs and the five girls gasp surprised. Leila says, “Damn! Cedes! You look good! Did you bedazzle those jeans?” Mercedes smiles and struts her way down the last few steps before spinning 360 degrees to show off her amazing dark denim jeans with studs on the back pockets and her navy blue button down shirt with white stitching topped off with a black cowgirl hat that’s cocked forward. As she looks up to her friends from under the bill of the hat she teases “Let’s go girls.” in a country accent. “Time to break in these boots!”

The group of girls laugh as they make their way to the SUV waiting outside Mercedes’ house. The diva looks at the car and man waiting outside and she starts to ask, “What the–” Sugar reaches the open door of the SUV and looking over her pink cowgirl hat with a simple shrug she explains, “I told you my daddy was paying. This is going to be a long trip, so I thought we should at least be comfortable. Come on let’s go!” The girls immediately climb the car and between good music and a few drinks, they make their way to the club.

After around an hour drive, the SUV pulls up in a parking lot next to a US Bank, a Long John Silvers and a couple other stores she didn’t even recognize the names of. Mercedes looks out the side window and in front of her there’s a Club with a bright yellow sign that reads _‘The Yellow Rose Night Club’._ “Where are we?” Mercedes asks still looking at the bright sign.

“Dayton! Well, technically we’re in a small town outside of Dayton, called Miamisburg but this is the best place around here” Leila exclaims, opening the door and making her way out.

“I had never heard of this place before” Mercedes tells the girls.

“Well, that’s because you always stay in Lima, but there’s a world outside of that town…” Her friend replies with a smirk on her face.

“Oh come on! Cedes don’t listen to her she just thinks this place is so great because her latest boo works here.” Olivia says mocking her friend who just rolls her eyes brushing the comment off.

“Do I have to remind you that I already went on tour? I’ve been to more cities than any of you” Mercedes brags a little, while climbing down the car.

“That’s not true” Sugar pipes in, “I’ve been to more cities than all of you”

Mercedes laughs and rectifying she says, “I’ve been to more cities than almost all of you.”

The girls laugh and one of them asks with a teasing tone, “Is Elvis going to be here?” looking right into Leila.

Mercedes looks between her friends and with a questioning brow she asks, “Who’s Elvis?”

Leila blushes and Olivia adds, “That’s her new bae of the week.”

Leila snaps “No! I’ve been talking to him for over a month now!”

“Wow that’s a step up girl!” Olivia rolls her eyes with a laugh.

Mercedes looks between the two confused. “You haven’t told me about any guy and you’ve been talking for a month! Girl, that is like marriage to you.” She laughs.

“I met him a few months ago at Tyler’s party. He was the DJ. I got to talk to him and we swapped numbers. One day, he invited me here. He works here and controls the mechanical bull and before any of you ask, no, he’s nothing like the real Elvis. He’s a total country redneck…” She swoons and the other girls looked at her confused. They always teased her for having a thing for the country boys.

The group of friends giggle and Mercedes returns to the original question, “So, is he going to be working tonight?”

Leila shrugs, not knowing the answer, “He hasn’t answered my text yet so I don’t know.”

Mercedes smiling at her friend joining in on messing with her, “I can believe that you Leila Marie Adams are dating a country guy.”

“I wouldn’t call her having quickies in the back of his truck dating.” Olivia says.

“Alright guys that’s not cool. I think it’s great Leila! You really like him don’t you? What is it you like about them redneck guys” Mercedes laughs.

Leila laughs and walking to the club’s door, she tries to explain, “I don’t know what it is, but I have a soft spot with boys with cowboy hats and boots with spurs.”

Once they get inside and past the doorman who checks their ID’s, the girls make their way to the bar that sits off to the left. They order a couple of beers and find a seat at one of the tables that surrounds the dance floor. The music is so loud it reverberates through the floors and Mercedes can feel it vibrating up her legs. Sitting on the stool her mind starts to drift off to a certain blonde, but before her thoughts could go too far, the song switches to a new one and Mercedes smiles, realizing that this night out can probably be a good idea after all.

The beat to the song starts to resound through the walls of the club; and Mercedes finds herself singing along while her friends raise their beer mugs and clink them in the air.

_(Mercedes)…8 o’clock on Friday night I’m still at home, all my girls just keep on blowing up my phone. Saying come on he ain’t worth the pain, Do what you gotta do to forget his name?…_

The Diva stands up from the stool and sets her beer down. Looking out over the wooden dance floor her eye follows the pattern of the line dance the night clubbers are doing.

_(Mercedes)…Now there’s only one thing left for me to do. Slip on my favorite dress and sky high leather boots. Check the mirror one last time and kiss the past goodbye…_

She looks from the dancers to the DJ booth in front of the dance floor. She sings, as she walks between the dance floor and the DJ booth, gaining stares from the other clubbers when they hear her soulful voice bringing the song to life.

_(Mercedes)…What I’m really needing now is a double shot of Crown. Chase that disco ball around ‘til I don’t remember. Go until they cut me off, wanna get a little lost in the noise, in the lights…Hey bartender! Pour ‘em hot tonight ‘til the party and the music and the truth collide. Bring it ‘til his memory fades away. Hey bartender!…_

Making it to the top of dance floor, she sings the next verse of the song. A gentleman suited in a pair of fitted  blue jeans, a tight black shirt that shows off his muscles and black boots with a tan cowboy hat steps up to her. Reaching his hand out, she places her hand in his and lets him twirl her around the dance floor.

_(Mercedes)…Tonight I’ll let a stranger pull me on the floor. Spin me ’round and let him buy a couple more, but before it goes too far I’ll let him down easy. ‘Cause tonight it’s all about dancing with my girls to the DJ put that song on replay…_

After spinning and being dipped a couple times by the handsome gentlemen, Mercedes softly pushes him away from her and looks towards the table where her friends are still sitting. She gives them a wiggle of her pointer finger in a _‘Come here’_ fashion.

_(Mercedes)…What I’m really needing now is a double shot of Crown. Chase that disco ball around ‘til I don’t remember. Go until they cut me off, wanna get a little lost in the noise, in the lights…Hey bartender! Pour ‘em hot tonight ‘til the party and the music and the truth collide. Bring it ‘til his memory fades away. Hey bartender!…_

Mercedes is now standing in the front of the dance floor singing. All her friends come and back her up as she starts line dancing. All the other dancers out of the wooden floor stop and watch the impromptu concert from the star.

_(Mercedes)…I’m feeling that buzz I’m ready to rock. Ain’t no way I’m gonna tell you to stop. So pour that thing up to the top. I’m coming in hot…Hey bartender!…_

The DJ lets out a whistle causing the diva to look back towards him. He drops down a microphone from the booth on the raised platform behind her and she catches it with her right hand. Sliding her feet across the floor, then stomping her boots, she continues to sing into the microphone.

_(Mercedes)…What I’m really needing now is a double shot of Crown. Chase that disco ball around ‘Til I don’t remember. Go until they cut me off, wanna get a little lost in the noise, in the lights Hey bartender pour ‘em hot tonight ‘til the party and the music and the truth collide. Bring it ‘til his memory fades away. Hey bartender…_

Mercedes and the girls stomp, twirl, and glide across the floor as she sings. Soon the floor is flooded with the other dancers, joining in the line dance with them.

_(Mercedes)…Hey bartender._

The newly famous singer finishes her song and the whole club stands up and starts to clap and cheer excitedly. Mercedes smiles and after taking a bow the diva star and her friends walk back to their table. Once there Leila exclaims, “See? This was a good idea!” Mercedes gives her a genuine smile before taking a sip of her beer and then replying, “The best idea ever! Thank you!”

Sam is seated at one of the chairs in the WMHS choir room. He’s tapping his left foot against the floor while impatiently unlocking his phone for the twelfth time and staring at the screen. Since he walked away after kissing Mercedes, the beautiful girl has been on his mind nonstop. He’s lost rereading the nine text messages he has sent Mercedes so far when a throat clearing makes him look up. Marley is there standing in the middle of the choir room with a sweet smile on her face and asking, “Are you expecting a call?”

“Oh! Hi, Marley! I didn’t hear you entering the room” Sam replies a bit startled, “…And ummm…No, I’m not expecting a call…”

Marley walks over to the set of chairs and leaving her bag on the floor, takes a seat next to her teacher. The silence is awkward so Marley starts to explain her reasons to be in the choir room; even when the rehearsal isn’t scheduled until 4pm, “I was late for History and Mr. Shiverdecker didn’t let me in, so I decided to come here to pass time and maybe rehearse for Regionals for a little while. I’m glad you’re here, maybe we could practice a bit, right?”

Sam agrees, but doesn’t seem to show any intention to actually stand up and start rehearsing. He keeps looking at the lock screen of his phone. Marley, noticing the teacher’s lack of reaction, asks, “Are you alright?”

Sam exhales in defeat and shaking his head replies, “No, I’m not…”

Marley is about to keep inquiring when the blonde looking up to meet her eyes asks, “Why do girls never text you back?”

The brunette frowns getting confused and Sam continues, “Explain this to me…If a girl doesn’t text you back in two days it’s a bad sign, right? It kind of means you did something wrong, right?…And maybe I shouldn’t be talking to my student about this…”

Marley smiles in understanding, she’s just starting to put all the pieces together. “Sam I was your friend before you were my teacher, so it’s fine and…Ummm…This is about Mercedes, isn’t it?”

Sam nods slightly and quickly looks down trying to hide his sad expression. “We went for a walk the other day and I don’t know what happened, but I lost control and without thinking about it, I kissed her…”

“Well that’s amazing! Does that mean you two are–” Marley begins to say, but Sam shakes his head and without letting his student to continue, he keeps on telling her the story, “And then I ran away! I literally ran away! I panicked and ran!”

Marley just lets out a simple, “Oh!” Because there is not much she can really say.

“I texted her that same night, but she never replied. I’ve been texting her since then and she hasn’t replied…In fact she hasn’t even read my messages!” Sam says with a hint of despair in his voice. ** **  
****

Marley gives him a sweet pat on the back, “Look Sam, I know that your relationship with her hasn’t been easy and she probably, like you, is having a hard time too. Just give her some time, maybe she hasn’t replied because she’s busy. Just give her a couple of more days…”

“She’s not busy, Marley. She always replies, even when she’s really busy…I think that this time, she just doesn’t want to know anything about me. I think this time I really screwed things up” Sam confesses to his once friend and now student.

Marley gives him a reassuring smile and not knowing what else to do she says, “Do you want to talk about what’s really happening? I can sense you have a lot of things going on through your mind and heart right now”

Sam exhales and lowering his gaze he gets even more frustrated while telling her his feelings, “I don’t know if I can explain what’s really happening…I think I don’t even understand it myself”

“But, you can try…” Marley insists. “Sometimes it’s good to share our feelings…It helps us understand them…”

Sam smiles sweetly to his student. He really appreciates it, but he’s not ready to share that with anyone, not even with himself. “Thanks Marley, you’re probably right. I guess I’m just confused. This whole situation is confusing, but sooner or later I’m going to understand it.”

The school bell rings and Marley grabs her bag from the floor and standing up she begins to say her goodbyes, “If you ever want to talk to someone, just know that I’m here, okay? See you later!”Sam smiles and nods as he watches the brunette leave the room.

Rachel is at the T.V show set and while she, as her character, says her last line the director yells, “Cut! Thanks Rachel! That was beautiful! Well done people! That’s all for tonight! Let’s go home and get some rest!” The cast and crew members exhale relieved and start to walk away. Rachel picks up her small bag and follows the crew when a strong arm stops her.

The brunette turns around and looks into beautiful blue eyes. Wesley is smiling at her and in a sweet and whispering voice he asks, “Could you stay here for a few couple of minutes?”

Rachel looks at her boyfriend and getting confused by the sudden petition, questions, “Why?”

“I just want to talk to you and show you something. It’s like surprise…” The actor says with a wink

“A surprise?” Rachel asks excitedly. Wesley smiles knowing her love of surprises.

The director, who’s still gathering his things, walks by and says his goodbye to his actors, “Have a great night guys! I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Rachel and Wesley say their goodbyes as the director walks away. Rachel, looking around to the empty set, asks, “So…Why did you want me to wait here? We could have talked in my trailer, or yours”

The man in front of her starts to get nervous and Rachel asks again, “What is it? You’re making me nervous. Is everything okay?”

Wesley reassures her by grabbing the brunette’s hand, “Everything is fine. It’s just that…Well, I know this week you’ve been a little worried about the whole thing with your friend and today at lunch when you told me you felt bad for being so competitive and all that stuff…You really left me thinking about it and I came to the conclusion that you’re probably right and–” The blue-eyed man tries to find the right words, when Rachel interrupts.

“So you made me stay here just to tell me that you think I’m a competitive bi–“ ** **  
****

“Don’t you even dare to finish that sentence!” Wesley exclaims, “I didn’t make you stay here for that, will you let me finish first?”

Rachel makes a silly pout and mutters, “Fine!”

“Before you interrupted, I was saying that yeah, you’re probably right. You’re competitive, but that’s just one of the many things I like about you. I don’t know who you were back when you were in high school or New York, but the Rachel I have in front of me takes my breath away every time I look into those beautiful brown eyes.”

“Wes…”

“Shhhh…I know you love Santana and I don’t believe that you’re a bad person for being a little competitive. In fact, I can get why you’re angry and why you feel betrayed, but having said that I also know that part of that anger lies in the fact that you’re capable of recognizing her talent and you see her as a threat.”

“I don’t–” The brunette immediately exclaims in self defense

Wesley raises his hand and puts a finger on Rachel’s lips to shut her. “Rachel please?”

Rachel rolls her eyes, “Okay…Go on.”

“Thanks…Where was I? Oh yeah…And you see her as a threat. However, I don’t believe she is here to dull your brightness, Rach. You both can shine in different spotlights…And I’m telling you this, not because I want to give you a pep talk or anything, but because I care about you and I want you to be happy…”

“But I’m happy” Rachel says faking a smile.

Wesley shakes his head and tells her, “No, you’re not. I know you’re still mad about her landing the role, but mostly you  feel guilty for not telling her that you already know and for–”

“I don’t feel guilty.” Rachel says, feeling exposed. She can’t believe that this man is able to see so deep into her heart.

“Don’t lie Rache. I know, okay? And do you want to know why you feel like that?”

Rachel, knowing she can’t lie to her boyfriend anymore, asks, “Why?”

“Because despite what you say, I know you care about her and Rache?…That just makes you more perfect for me…”

“Wes I–” The now stunned girl mumbles, unable to find the correct words to say to this man.

“Don’t say anything…I know. I just wanted to make sure you remembered who you really are okay? I don’t want you to keep feeling like this. At lunch I told you what I think you need to do, so just find the right moment and talk to your friend. I’m sure everything is going to be fine…”

A huge smile spreads on Rachel’s face as she leans over to kiss her boyfriend quickly.  The handsome and wise man kisses her back and when they split, he gives his hands a little clap, “Now follow me…It’s time for your surprise…”

“What is it?”

“Ummm, a dinner and a very extra special surprise” the actor says with a huge grin on his face.

Rachel smiles playfully. Wesley grabs one of her hands and pulling her, he takes her to one of the multiple sets. Rachel looks around. They are at one of the sets for Rachel’s show. To be precise they are in the bar where Ben, Wesley’s character, works, getting more confused she asks, “What are we doing here?”

“Welcome to _the Crown!_ Tonight we will have a very special karaoke dinner!”

“A what?”

“A karaoke dinner…” Her romantic boyfriend repeats while helping his girlfriend to take a seat at one of the empty tables. “Now you sit there and watch me do the rest”

Rachel frowns confused and Wes burst out laughing. He walks to the small stage and giving the brunette his very special crooked smile he asks, “Did I ever mention I sing too?”

Rachel’s eyes open wide as the music starts. Wesley grabs the microphone and when Rachel recognizes the song she murmurs to herself, _“Oh God.”_ Because she can’t believe this man is about to sing Jesse McCartney. Wes starts to sing and rachel can’t help but laugh.

_(Wesley)…Staring out at the rain with a heavy heart, it’s the end of the world in my mind. Then your voice pulls me back, like a wake-up call. I’ve been looking for the answer, somewhere. I couldn’t see that it was right there, but now I know what I didn’t know…_

Wes sings, following the lyrics that are appearing on the screen in front of him. Rachel keeps looking at him and is trying hard not to sing along. She can’t admit she knows the lyrics of that song back and forwards.

_(Wesley)…Because you live and breathe, because you make me believe in myself when nobody else can help. Because you live girl my world has twice as many stars in the sky…_

The talented man ends up taking the microphone and walking away from the screen. Rachel raises a questioning brow because he’s no longer reading the lyrics. He smiles and still singing, he walks towards her.

_(Wesley)…It’s all right, I survived, I’m alive again ’cause of you, made it through every storm. What is life? What’s the use? If you’re killing time. I’m so glad I found an angel someone, who was there when all my hopes fell. I wanna fly looking in your eyes…_

Rachel watches Wes’ performance around the small place. He’s really enjoying the song and the beautiful actress can’t stop thinking that he actually has a really great voice.

_(Wesley)…Because you live and breathe, because you make me believe in myself when nobody else can help. Because you live girl my world has twice as many stars in the sky…Because you live,I live…_

Wesley grabs one of the chairs of the front tables and flips it backwards placing it in front of the brunette. Rachel lets out a small smile and Wesley swings a leg over the chair to sit in it backwards while singing directly to her. In that moment, Rachel realizes that the man she has in front of her, is not only doing this performance for fun. There’s another intention behind it all. He’s actually singing her the song and therefore all the lyrics are for her. Rachel can’t help but swoon at that thought.

_(Wesley)…Because you live, there’s a reason why I carry on when I lose the fight. I want to give what you’ve givin’ me always…_

Wesley grabs one of Rachel’s hands and sings, pouring all his heart in the song. She takes the moment to look at him closely. He’s wearing that leather black jacket she loves so much and a pair of grey pants that help to highlight his toned legs. His sharp face is only lit by the dim light coming from the small stage and Rachel can’t help but get lost in his sparkling blue eyes.

 _(Wesley)…Because you live and breathe, because you make me believe in myself when nobody else can help. Because you live girl my world has twice as many stars in the sky. Because you live and breathe, because you make me believe in myself when nobody else can help. Because you live girl my world has everything, I need to survive._ ****  
****

Wesley stands up from the chair and immediately climbs into the table. Rachel looks at him surprised and the fearless man giving her a smirk makes his way back to the stage walking on top of all the tables. Rachel bursts out laughing and thinks to herself, _“seriously, can he get any more cuter?”_ As he jumps back into the stage to end the song.

_(Wesley)…Because you live, I live, I live…_

After Wesley finishes performing, the short woman stands up and walking towards the stage, smiling flirtatiously, while telling him, “You know? You should have never, ever, told me you could sing…”

“Why not?” Wesley asks confused.

Rachel, with a huge grin on her face says, “Because, now we’ll have to sing a duet at least…Ummm…Once or twice a week to keep our instruments sharp.” causing the loving man to laugh and kiss her while looking at her in adoration.

Santana lays across a queen sized bed. Her hair is disheveled and sprawled out across the quilted pattern of the blanket that was tucked neatly into the mattress corners underneath her. For the most part the room is quiet, only noises that can be heard is their neighbors dog’s barks that are traveling through the walls into their apartment; and the constant purring sound coming from Lord Tubbington, who sits perched up on the window sill. The brunette lays there with her phone in her left hand staring at her background picture which was a picture of her and Brittany from their trip to Disney. Letting out a sigh and dropping the phone to her chest, she turns her head and looks out the open window. The sun is just now starting to lower itself in the sky.

She is brought out of her thoughts when she hears the sound of feet shuffling into the room. Turning her head in the opposite direction she sees Brittany wearing a pair of yellow sweat pants and a green oversized t-shirt. The blonde isn’t wearing any makeup and her hair is pulled back into a messy bun with a few strands falling out and around her face. Santana smiles at her girlfriend as she walks closer to the bed.

Brittany drops the basket she had been carrying on her waist onto the bed. “We have laundry!” She exclaims. Santana’s eyes drift from beautiful blue eyes to the overflowing laundry basket just waiting to be folded.

“Ew.” Santana says shortly. “I see what you did there Britt, walking in looking all cute so I wouldn’t notice the laundry basket.”

The taller woman looks down at herself with a confused look and then back up to her girlfriend. “Well you know I had to start trying something new since how last time you locked the bedroom door and refused to let me in with any clothing. Including the ones I was wearing.”

Santana smirks at her own geniusness. “I hate laundry, what can I say.”

“Come on! It’s not that bad.” Brittany sends the brunette a fake pout.

“You play dirty, Pierce.” Santana laughs as she sits up and grabs an article of clothing from the top of the teetering mound of clean clothes.

The two women sit on the edge of their bed folding what seems like the never ending pile of clothes they had. Which makes Santana wonder where they got half of this anyways. Brittany looks up from the pair of yoga pants she is folding and watches as Santana tries, but fails, to fold one of her shirts. “San honey, that goes on a hanger.” Brittany say softly.

“Oh well, no wonder I couldn’t fold the damn thing.” She places the shirt off to the side to be hung up later. Then, she grabs another shirt and tries to fold it while her eyes drift back over to her phone and staring at it’s black screen, willing it to light up.

After the brunette has attempted at folding four more shirts while gazing at her phone, she lets out a huff and then makes the short walk to their shared dresser and shoves the balled up pieces of clothing in a draw.

From the bed, Brittany watches her girlfriend. Standing up and making her way to the brunette, she softly grabs the shorter woman’s hands to keep her from stuffing the now unfolded clothes into the draw any farther. “Here, let me help.” The blonde opens the draw farther and pulls out the clothing Santana tried stuffing in there. She refolds them and places them neatly in the draw before closing it. “How about you just sit here and keep me company while I do the folding? Because you’re kind of just making the process longer.” She let out a light giggle.

Sighing, Santana sits on the edge of the bed. Taking a look at her phone before running her hands through her hair and looking up to Brittany responding, “Sorry. It’s just that it’s Friday now and I still haven’t heard anything from my agent.” Brittany can tell that her girlfriend is getting really frustrated. She sets the laundry basket on the floor and scoots closer to the other woman wrapping her arms around the brunette. Santana lays her head on Brittany’s shoulder and fighting back tears, says, “I just don’t understand. I was better than everyone there.” Brittany silently agrees with a nod of her head. She brings her hand that was wrapped around her lover’s back and smoothes out Santana’s hair before placing a kiss to the top of her head. Santana continues,“I mean they should at least be calling to tell me I didn’t get the part.” Choking out a sob. “This is like worse than Chinese water torture.”

Brittany runs her hand down her lover’s back tracing small soothing patterns there. “Take a deep breath San. I’m sure there is a logical reason why they haven’t called yet.” Tilting her head to look at Santana’s face she continues. “This is so unlike you to get worked up over a job like this. I’m sure you got it, but even if you didn’t, like you said, you have other auditions.”

Lifting her head up from her girlfriend’s shoulder, Santana casts her eyes down to her lap. She sniffles and wipes off the few tears that had escaped her eyes. Clearing her throat she sits up a bit straighter, “Yeah. I know. You’re right.” There is a pause, a moment of silence, and Santana can feel the blonde’s eyes still on her. Letting her eyes rise to the blue ones staring softly at her she takes this moment to bring up another topic. “What about you Britt? Are you ready to talk about what got you so quiet the other day when we were having lunch with Rachel?”

Brittany’s eyes drift from the sincere browns and over to Lord Tubbington, still sitting on the window seal. He lets out a loud purr causing her to laugh quietly. She looks down to the quilt on their bed and starts picking at the strings. Shrugging her shoulders she says, “I don’t know, I have just been thinking since I’ve been going to The Unknown is Known Studio ..I’ve just been thinking-thinking that maybe…I don’t know it’s probably not even possible, so I don’t know, why I even thought about it. Which is why I got quiet because I’ll just prove everyone who said I wouldn’t make it right.”

“Woah, woah, Britt, back up. What are you talking about? What is it that you wanna do baby? And I will do everything to make sure you can do it! With in reason Britt, I’m not letting you join the circus like you asked during sophomore year. ** **  
****

Brittany smiles at the memory, “I was thinking, I want to have my own studio. To teach dance…” She trails off looking up from the bed to her girlfriend to see her reaction.

A slow smile spreads across Santana’s face. “Really?”

“Yeah, I know it’s stupid, just forget it.” Brittany mumbles softly, feeling embarrassed.

“No Britt! That’s genius! You would be amazing at that!” Santana looks to her girlfriend with wide eyes. “Britt, you’re an amazing dancer; and heck you taught half the Glee Club how to dance. Why do you think this isn’t a good idea?”

“Because I’m not smart enough to run a business, San.”

“Okay, first of all you are, you’re a genius- how many times do I have to tell you, B? Second of all, you could just be the owner and a teacher, you could hire someone to do all the boring stuff for you right? I mean, I’m not sure how these thing work. But if this is something you seriously want to do we can look into it. Don’t let all those Lima losers get to you. You can do anything you put your mind to Britt.” Santana leans over and places a soft kiss to soft lips. “You know, I was scared too.”

Brittany scrunches her brows in confusion, “You? But you’re not afraid of anything, you’re Santana Lopez.”

“Come on. You know me better than that. I just hide it well. Tell anyone that and I’ll deny it one hundred percent.” The two women laugh. “But, yes, I was scared. I love singing and I always thought that’s what I wanted to do. And don’t get me wrong, I still will do an impromptu performance and blow Berry out of the water, but to me singing was always a more private thing. It was a way to express myself when I didn’t know how to say the words I was feeling. I realized that it wasn’t something I wanted to share with everyone, just those who mean something to me. And then I realized that acting was my true passion. But I was so  afraid of failing. And maybe that’s why I’m so nervous about not getting that phone call yet.  But a great woman once told me, walking away from a dream I didn’t really care about, was me winning; and that I should follow what my real dream was and that I should say ‘This is me and I don’t care who knows it’, Do you know who said that?” Brittany shakes her head slightly while looking into soft brown eyes.

“You.” Santana says causing Brittany to blush. “Britt, if this is what you really wanna do you should stand tall and make it happen and I’ll help you in any way you need me too you know that. You’ve got my support babe.” Santana turns her body so she is facing her lover completely. A tan hand cups an alabaster cheek, “I believe in you Brittany. So we both made big steps by coming out here, but it’s time we start making our dreams come true, right?”

The blonde goes to open her mouth to respond when Santana’s phone starts to ring causing the brunette to jump up from the bed in search for her phone. Spotting in at the top of the bed by her pillows she grabs it and sees the name on the caller ID that reads Brandy. She shows the screen to Brittany who smiles widely and says, “Yeah, we got to make our dreams come true. Starting with yours.” she sits there and rocks back and forth on her knees in excitement as Santana drags her finger across the screen and lifts the device to her ear.

“Hello.”

Kurt sits alone at the Vogue’s meeting’s room. The sun is starting to set in the horizon while he’s waiting impatiently for the meeting to start. The wall clock reads five so that means that the meeting is about to start. Kurt shifts uncomfortably in his chair. This meeting is pretty important, Isabelle said that today she will be announcing the new Fashion Week director and Kurt can’t help but imagine himself actually getting that promotion. He thinks to himself, _“That would be like a dream come true.”_ He’s lost in his own thoughts when the door of the room swings open.

Kurt looks up and exclaims “Hi Chad” when he notices his fellow co-worker walking in.

Chad smiles slightly and without replying he takes a seat next to Kurt. The room is still empty and Kurt trying to break the ice, says, “So, this week has been crazy…”

“Yeah…” The man next to him replies without even looking up. ** **  
****

The atmosphere is tense. He can feel it and so does Chad. They have always been on good terms, however with the internal competition to get the promotion things changed between them. Kurt rolls his eyes and getting tired of the overwhelming silence snaps, “Okay! Enough! What’s wrong with us? We’re friends right?”

Chad nods and Kurt continues, “Then why are we acting like this? I don’t like this awkwardness between us. It’s not right! We know each other for what? A year?” the man nods again and the blue-eyed man continues, “Then we shouldn’t be acting like this. I know this position is a big deal for all of us, but I don’t want to lose a friend because of it. So I just want you to know that if you get the promotion, which I’m sure you will because you’re extremely talented, I’ll be happy for you!”

Chad smiles and looking at his friend before exclaiming, “Oh God! You’re so right! This is not okay! We are friends! I’m sorry, I guess the stress just made me act stupid but of course I’ll be happy if you get the promotion too. In fact, I believe it’s almost a–” he is saying when the door of the meetings room swings open and the rest of the people join in quickly crowding the empty seats. Kurt gives his friend a _‘We’ll continue later’_ look and quickly returns his attention to his computer.

Isabelle Wright takes the head seat and taking out her iPad she gives a warm smile while getting her employees, “Hello everybody! Glad to see you all together again…What a week right?” ** **  
****

The group of writers, designers, and interns nod in agreement as Isabelle continues, “Okay, we have a lot of stuff going on so let’s start…”

They all begin to take out their own devices to take some notes as the meeting starts. Isabelle reading from her iPad says, “Okay, so…First things first. Let’s check the articles we need to publish next week, okay? I need to send them all to Dimitri today. Kurt…Ummm…Could you pass me the list I gave you earlier please?”

Kurt nods and takes a piece of paper of one of the folders that he has in front of him. Standing up he hands the list to his boss. Isabelle smiles and just mutters, “Thank you” as Kurt takes his seat again.

“Okay, Chad did you have the three articles I requested?” Chad immediately nods and hands her three different folders. “Good, Miles…Did you call Anastasha? Did she send you her report on the Miuccia Prada fashion show?”

“Yeah, I emailed you the reports and sent a copy to Dimitri just in case.”

“Perfect, did you finish your articles?” Miles is quick to respond, “Here…” while handing her a bunch of loose sheets. Isabelle frowns and asks, “And the folders?”

Miles smiles apologetically and just replies, “Sorry”

Isabelle shakes her head and warns him, “Don’t let that happen again, okay? Kurt, do you have your articles?”

The intern quickly passes along three labeled colorful folders. Isabelle smiles for a brief second and getting back to business she continues, “Thanks Kurt. Shaun…The guest list for the Tommy Hilfiger launch of Assouline’s _Life of Style_? Is it ready?”

“Ready and approved.” Shaun states, “Dimitri said he would email it back to you.”

“Okay, I’ll check that with him then. I just need you to hand me your articles. You were in charge of Tokyo’s new fashion trends, right?”

Shaun nods as he hands her a single folder. Isabelle collects all the folders and piling them in front of her, she continues, “Okay. I have all your articles and I’ll read and edit them later before sending the copies to Dimitri. Let’s move now to more important things…”

Writers, designers and interns start to shift uncomfortably in their seats. They all know what is coming. The announcement of the new Fashion Week director.

Isabelle stands up and walking toward the window she starts to say, “You all know that today we will be naming one of you as our new Fashion Week director. This job, though it doesn’t seem like it, is one of the most difficult and demanding positions we have at Vogue.com. It requires responsibility, commitment and talent. The person we’ve chosen to get this position is one of our most valuable employees. Since this person arrived at Vogue they have proven to possess a keen eye for fashion and has shown to be one of the most responsible, talented and creative people I know.” The blonde praises while looking at one of the corners of the table.

The rest of the group turns around to try to guess who she’s talking about. The two members seated at the end of the table are Kurt and Chad. Two of the most valuable interns. Kurt, feeling the questioning look of his coworkers decides to close his eyes and take deep breaths to steady his heart.

“This decision was relatively easy, it seems that all the chief editors share my opinion about this person…” Isabelle continues her reasoning as she walks back to her seat.

All that time Kurt finds himself whispering, _“Please let it be me.”_ as he tries to calm himself down a bit. His hands are shaking and he can feel the sweat running down his neck.

“Anyways, I don’t want to talk much because I’m sure you already know of who I’m talking about. So let’s make this quick and without further introduction…Please give a round of applause to our new Fashion Week director…The one and only…” She keeps making the room tense with anticipation as Kurt slowly takes a deep, deep breath.

Santana stands by the window clutching her phone to her ear. Brittany is still sitting on the bed behind her staring at the back of her head, trying to figure out what was going on through her girlfriend’s body language.

There is a silent pause around them as Santana holds her breath and stands stock still like if she moved she would wake up from this dream.

“Did you hear what I said?” Brandy, is heard through the speakers. “You landed the lead role!” Successfully snapping Santana out of her haze.

Finally, sucking in a shaky breath, Santana turns around when she feels a soft hand press to the small of her back. Brittany is now standing beside her, looking into brown eyes she sees a tear fall down a tanned cheek. With a huge smile bunching up pale cheeks, Brittany brings her hand up to wipe away her lover’s tear. Without even having to say a word to each other the two woman gave each other knowing smiles.

—–

On the other side of the country, Isabelle Wright takes a deep breath and with a big smile plastered on her face finishes saying, “…The one and only. Mr. Kurt Hummel!”

The moment Kurt hears his name his whole body freezes and his eyes snap open. _‘Am I dreaming?’_ He thinks to himself and with a very shocked expression; he slowly turns around to face his boss looking for some confirmation that he’s is, in fact, just dreaming. Isabelle gives her pupil a sweet smile and starts to clap. It’s then that Kurt notices that the whole group is actually clapping too, and probably have been clapping for a couple of minutes now. But he can’t really hear anything, Isabelle’s voice saying his name keeps ringing in his head as he tries to assimilate what’s happening. _“It’s me, it’s really me!”_ He thinks to himself again.

—–

“Yeah, yeah, sorry I heard you. Thank you so much for calling and telling me.” Santana speaks softly trying to hide her excitement.

“Of course, Santana, and I will forward you an e-mail of the information they sent for your first meeting with them, tomorrow morning.”

Santana nods in response even though the woman on the other line can’t see her, “Yes, okay. Thank you again, Brandy.” After a short goodbye Santana hangs up the phone and stares at it in disbelief.

Shifting her eye from the device in her hand up to sparking blue eyes, she can see Brittany bouncing trying to contain her excitement. The brunette lets out a jagged breath and then a shy laugh. “I got the part.” She whispers, more to herself that out loud. “Britt! I got the the part! I actually got it!” She now is practically yelling as she stares at the blonde with wide eyes and a smile.

Laughing, Brittany grabs Santana’s hands and pulls her into a hug as she bounces on her heels. “I know you would Sanny! I knew it!” Santana wraps her arms around Brittany’s waits and sways from side to side. She may have looked like a love struck teenager, but she was so happy that she didn’t even care.

—– ** **  
****

Isabelle, noticing Kurt’s uncertainty, says, “Come over here Kurt!”

The shocked man, who is paler than usual, stands up like in slow motion and walks to the front of the room to meet Isabelle. The blonde immediately pulls him into a bear hug and whispers into his ear, “Congratulations, Kurt! You did it! You really did it! Welcome to the team!”

“I did?” Kurt asks, still confused

Isabelle laughs and giving him a pat on the back for encouragement says, “Yes! Congratulations!”

Kurt’s eyes open wide as the news finally sink. He starts to exclaim excited, “Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God!” And without noticing starts to jump up and down grabbing Isabelle’s hands. His boss just laughs as the rest of the table stand up too to congratulate the new member of the team.

—–

Santana feels as if a huge weight was lifted off her shoulders. Her dreams were coming true and she had her girlfriend there with her to basket in the excitement with. Santana pulls out of their embrace, but just enough to look into her lovers eyes. “I couldn’t have done it without you, Britt.”  She leans in and places the softest of kisses to pink lips. Brittany is quick to deepen the kiss, trying to show her love for the other with just the power of her own lips.

They part an inch and Brittany smiles, biting her bottom lip as she blushes, “Yes, you could have, your amazing Santana and you extremely talented. I’m just glad others are seeing that now too” Santana looks down before fluttering her eyes back up to her lovers, looking at her through her lashes. Exhaling and letting the new news sink in she says, “Oh God! I’m just so happy right now.” She chuckles at herself, “And I don’t care how much of a dork I sound” Shaking her head in amusement she looks around the room then back to her girlfriend giving her sides a gentle squeeze. “This is going to be a good life!” Brittany smiles back to Santana, who nods in agreement. Santana smiles and winks to the blonde as she starts to sing.

_(Santana)…Woke up in London yesterday, found myself in the city near Piccadilly. Don’t really know how I got here. I got some pictures on my phone, new names and numbers that I don’t know, address to places like Abbey Road. Day turns to night, night turns to whatever we want. We’re young enough to say_

Santana runs her hands up Brittany’s arms softly. The blonde catches the brunette’s hands and pulls away from her, lifting her hand up and gently causing the shorter woman to twirl. After a full spin Brittany stops Santana by her waist and leans her back dipping her before slowly bringing her back up causing the Latina to laugh as she continues to sing.

_(Santana)…Oh, this has gotta be the good life, this has gotta be the good life, this could really be a good life, good life. Say, “Oh, got this feeling that you can’t fight” like this city is on fire tonight. This could really be a good life, a good, good life…_

Chad smiles warmly at Kurt and hugs him tightly. Kurt is still shaking as he receives hugs from all his coworkers. Isabelle takes a piece of paper from the table and hands it to Kurt. He grabs it and reads, “Congratulations, Mr. Hummel, you are the new director of the Fashion Week events at Vogue.com. Please go to HR to sign your contract. Sincerely, Adam” Kurt smiles warmly as he starts to sing.

_(Kurt)…To my friends in New York, I say hello. My friends in L.A. they don’t know where I’ve been for the past few years or so, Paris to China to Colorado. Sometimes there’s airplanes I can’ t jump out, sometimes there’s bullshit that don’t work now. We all got our stories, but please tell me…what there is to complain about?…_

Kurt keeps singing while Isabelle leads him to a new and empty office. Kurt frowns confused and Isabelle with a big smile on her face, walks to the glass desk and turns around the small wooden name plate and Kurt smiles. The plate says, “Kurt Hummel. Fashion Week Director.”

_(Both)…When you’re happy like a fool, let it take you over. When everything is out you gotta take it in…_

The brunette woman pulls out of her lovers embrace. With a smirk she walks over to the bed where their folded clothes sit. Grabbing a handful of clean clothes, she throws them up in the air in victory. Brittany’s eyes go wide for a moment before her expression turns to a cheeky smile as she laughs at her girlfriend’s antics.

_(Both)…Oh, this has gotta be the good life, this has gotta be the good life, this could really be a good life, good life. I say, oh, got this feeling that you can’t fight, like this city is on fire tonight. This could really be a good life, a good, good life…Oh, a good, good life, yeah…_

After letting the clothes fall to the floor around them Santana grabs Brittany’s hand and drags her out of the bedroom. Walking down the hallway and into the living room she lets go of Brittany’s hand and grabs the lint roller that was sitting on an end table. She dramatically turns around and sings into the lint roller as if it were a microphone.

Kurt looks at the window of his new office. The view is not spectacular just some windows of the building next door and a couple of trees. ‘But at least I have a view’ he thinks to himself. Isabelle walks to the door and Kurt turns around giving her a ‘Thank you’ look. The blonde smiles warmly and just mouths _“You’re welcome.”_ as she walks out closing the door behind her.

_(Santana)…Hopelessly. I feel like there might be something that I’ll miss…_

As Santana spins around their small apartment a smile stretched across her face. This place may be small, but she can’t help but think that those four walls held everything she ever wanted and needed. Brittany leans up against the wall watching her girlfriend sing and dance around the living room, loving how happy she is.

 _(Kurt)…Hopelessly. I feel like the window closes oh so quick…_ ****  
****

Kurt sits on his new chair and spinning around he starts to laugh like a small kid. This whole thing seems like a dream, and probably a few years back he would have been afraid to suddenly wake up. But he knows this time is different, this time it’s really true and he can’t help but smile and laugh because he’s extremely happy.

_(Santana)…Hopelessly. I’m taking a mental picture of you now…_

Feeling a pair of eyes studying her, Santana turns towards her girlfriend and proves her theory right when she sees baby blues shining back at her. Taking in the sight of her lover she continues to sing as she thinks about what the night events meant for them. She mentally lets herself relax; knowing she doesn’t have to worry anymore. Not only was this opportunity her dream job, but it also made another dream of hers come true. She no longer had to worry about whether she would fail at taking care of, or being good enough for Brittany. She feels like everything is fall into place for them, and that they would without a doubt make it.

_(Kurt)…’Cause hopelessly. The hope is we have so much to feel good about…_

Kurt feels a little dizzy due to the spinning so he stops and takes a few deep breaths. When his heart and head are steady again, he stands up and starts exploring his new small, but private, office as he continues singing. ** **  
****

_(Both)…Oh, this has gotta be the good life, this has gotta be the good life, this could really be a good life, good life. Say, “Oh, got this feeling that you can’t fight, like this city is on fire tonight. This could really be a good life, a good, good life…”_

Taking a couple steps closer to Brittany, Santana reaches and arm out asking for her girlfriend’s hand. Brittany gives the shorter woman a smile as she places her hand in her lovers. Pulling Brittany from her place up against the wall, the two women dance around the small apartment, shaking their hips and dipsing their shoulders to the beat as Santana continues to sing with a big smile on her face.

Kurt walks out his new office and reaches his old desk. He looks at his small working place and for a moment he lets himself start missing everything about it. The constant chatting with the other girls on the desks next to his, the morning coffee, the silly meetings blackboard…Heck, even the annoying sounds of the copy machine. He starts to pick his stuff when one of the girls, his friend Mrs. Davis, comes over and hands him a small box so he can carry his things to the new place. He looks at the old lady and giving her a sweet smile he starts to pack all his stuff.

_(Santana)…Oh yeah, good, good life, good life, oh, this is…Listen_

After laughing and dancing around the living room, Santana feels Brittany’s hand on on her waist. She looks up to a pale face and laughs as Brittany tickles up her lovers sides. Santana sings while trying to grabs her girlfriend’s hands to cease their attack on her sides. Brittany lifts both of her hands up calling a truce. She then points over to their bedroom and with a nod in that direction she silently ask Santana to head that way. Once in the bedroom, Brittany picks up the laundry basket with the remaining clothes left in it and sits it in front of Santana. She then picks up some random articles of clothing that were thrown around the room from Santana’s celebration. The blonde places the handful of clothes back in the basket and then hands Santana a shirt. Santana lets out a loud laugh as she grabs the shirt and throws it over her shoulder, then back on the floor while playfully shaking her head at her girlfriend.

Kurt walks into his new office again and places the full box at one of the chairs. With a smile he starts to take out all his stuff and placing it on their new respective places in the new drawers, shelves and desk.

_(Kurt)…To my friends in New York, I say hello, my friends in L.A. they don’t know where I’ve been for the past few years or so, Paris to China to Colorado. Sometimes there’s airplanes I can’ t jump out. Sometimes there’s bullshit that don’t work now. We all got our stories but please tell me…_

Brittany tries to suppress a laugh, but it doesn’t go unnoticed by the brunette. Santana hops up on the bed and grabs a towel next to her feet and swings it in the air playfully before wrapping it around Brittany’s waist; capturing her and gentling pulling her closer to the bed. ** **  
****

As the song comes to an end, Kurt places his last picture frame over his new desk and a soft smile escapes from his lips. It’s a picture of Blaine and him at Dalton when Blaine proposed. Smiling at the picture, he takes out his phone and dials his fiance’s number. He needs to share the news as soon as possible.

_(Both)…What there is to complain about?_

As Santana drags Brittany closer to the bed she loses her footing on a pair of underwear the had been tossed on the bed at some point. She stumbles and starts to lean back. Since she still has Brittany wrapped in a towel she drags Brittany down with her, as they both fall back onto the mattress while laughing so hard they are turning red in the face.

Once they finally catch their breath and their laughter turns into light giggles and chuckles. Santana says, in a raspy voice, dropping an octave lower than usual, “When you pointed toward the room I thought you had other plans for us…Not folding the rest of our clothes” Brittany smiles in response and brings her right hand to run up her lovers’ sides landing on her forearms, “Who says I didn’t?” Brittany husks with a slight laugh before leaning in and pressing their lips together as they both smile into the kiss.

—–

Kurt waits impatiently while his fiance picks up the phone. The hazel-eyed man answers with a _“Hi babe!”_

Kurt, taking a deep breath and not really finding any more words, just replies, “I got it!”

Blaine doesn’t need to ask any further to start screaming and that causes Kurt to laugh a little. He can clearly picture his love jumping up and down with that huge grin on his face that he happens to love so much.

 _“Oh my god Kurt! I knew it! I knew it! I knew it! I’m so happy for you! Tell me how it was? I need details!”_ Blaine exclaims excited

Kurt laughs at the desperation in his fiance’s voice and says, “I’m on my way home! I’ll tell you all about it there! I want to see you!”

 _“I’ll meet you there then, but we have to celebrate this!”_ Blaine adds.

“I don’t–” Kurt is saying but he’s interrupted by a still very much excited Blaine who quickly shouts, playfully, _“Shut it Babe! We are going to celebrate! You deserve it! I’ll make reservations right away! We can invite all your friends! Tonight is your night! Oh my God Kurt! I’m so happy right now!”_

Kurt smiles warmly and a wave of overwhelming happiness suddenly hits him, making his eyes well up with tears, “Okay”

Blaine noticing the change in his love’s voice tone asks, _“Are you okay?”_ ** **  
****

Kurt nods and ads, “Yeah, just extremely happy! I’ll see you in a few okay? love you!”

 _“I love you too!”_ Blaine replies and Kurt, wiping away the small tears that escaped his eyes cuts off the call and stands up to finally go home.

The sun has already set when Santana, Brittany and Rachel sit down at a table at La Prime restaurant in downtown L.A. The lighting in the room is set on low and everything seems polished to a T. The waiters are wearing black dress pants, along with a white button down shirt, and a fitted formal black vest accompanied with a black bowtie. Their tables are covered with a white table cloth and the light emitting off the small glass figures with candles inside of them flickers off the shadows that cast upon the tables.

“Rachel, I don’t think I want to know what you had to do to get us in here, but this place is beautiful. I can’t get over the view.” Santana says not taking her eyes off the tall glass windows acting as walls. They were on the 35th floor of The Westin Bonaventure hotel, overlooking the city nightlife. The city lights shine bright into the dim light room creating a beautiful back drop.

“Oh, but I didn’t get us the reservations. Brittany did.”

Santana’s head whips quickly over to her girlfriend, “Oh my God. Britt, is that true?”

Brittany just shrugs like it is no big deal, “Yeah. I mean I had a little help, but I wanted the best for you tonight. You deserve it Santana.”

Santana opens her mouth to respond but nothing comes out she is speechless and wonders how she ever got so lucky to be with someone like the blonde sitting to her right. The silence is soon interrupted by a waiter bringing out a tall glass rimmed with a white cloth, and filled with a variety of different types of bread. Brittany whispers a, _“Thank You”_ to the waiter before grabbing to small white glass plates and putting a piece of bread on one, and hands it to Santana and then does the same for herself. Santana looks to Brittany in awe. Reaching a hand over to squeeze the taller woman’s hand, Santana leans over and presses a quick kiss to a pale cheek and whispers, “ _Thank You So Much”_. Brittany just smiles back to her lover, then picks up the menu and scooting her chair closer to Santana’s so they could both look over the menu together and discuss their appetizer options.

The two women look up when they head Rachel clear her throat. “ What is it Berry? Did you choke on your over-sized ego?” Rachel rolls her eyes slightly, but then looks down at her hands and back up to the brunette sitting across from her. Taking a deep breath she begins, “Umm,….Santana, there is something I need to confess…” Santana quirks her head to the side and scrunches her brows in confusion, “What is it, Squidward”

“Okay, I get that you’re making fun of my nose, but you do know you just admitted to watching Spongebob?” Rachel asks getting off topic.

Santana pauses, not really thinking it all the way through, but then quickly cover it up with, “Look Berry, Britt likes to watch it in the morning, and that’s when I like to get my cuddlez on” She says, trying to sound ghetto. “So, I may have seen an episode or two.” She looks over to Brittany for help, but Rachel quickly interrupts.

“Anyway, that’s not the point, the point is I need to come clean about something…” She trails off before turning serious again, “I -I knew about you getting the lead role since Monday.”

Shocked, and not expecting to hear what she just told, Santana replies, “You what?”

Rachel starts rambling in fear that she pissed the Latina off. “I’m sorry, okay? On Monday I was walking back to my trailer when I overheard two crew guys talking about your show and I heard your name and I got mad, because I didn’t know you had auditioned for that show at the same network and you know me…I’m a little competitive, and I was afraid you were trying to do the same you did with Funny Girl and…I’m sorry okay? I should have told you and I’m truly, really, happy you landed the role!”

Santana looks around the room from the beautiful view outside and the beautiful one sitting to her right and she smiles, “You know what Hobbit? I’m so happy right now that I’m going to over look your self absorbed shenanigans and competitiveness, because nothing can bother me today. So apology accepted! In fact I’m glad you didn’t tell me, it was 100% better to hear the news from Brandy, because at least she has a nice voice.”

Letting a sigh of relief and a laugh escape her lips, Rachel relaxes, because she knows when Santana makes fun of her it’s her showing that they are okay. Santana looks back over at her girlfriend who has been unusually quiet and sees her pull out her phone, looking at the digital clock on the home screen. “What’s up Britt-Britt?”

Sighing, and putting her phone back in her purse, she softly says, “I don’t understand they should be here by now.” ** **  
****

Santana stares at the blonde confused, “Who?”

Brittany realizes what she just slipped up and said and quickly tries to take it back “What? Nothing, no one. Hey, you know? You haven’t called the unicorns yet!” Her eyes sparkle at the mention of her two New York friends. ** **  
****

“Oh, wow! Britt, you’re right! How could I have not called the wonder twins yet and gloated about my inevitable success?” She pulls her phone out from her bra and scrolling through her contacts she asks, “Should I call Lady Lips or Fruity Fonzie?”

Rachel laughs and says, “You and your nicknames! You know? We all know now that when you do that you are just trying to hide the fact you care about us. But call Kurt I bet he’s not expecting you to call him!”

Santana dials the number and as soon as the other side of the line picks up she exclaims, “Hey, Lady-Hummel! Guess what? You’re talking to the next big TV star! Yep, that’s right, I’m so going to beat Berry!” Santana looks over to Rachel and sends her a wink to let her know she’s just teasing Rachel for her earlier fears.

 

Kurt and Blaine are walking hand in hand along seventh Avenue while the city that never sleeps remains buzzing. Kurt looking at his fiance asks, “Remind me again, where are we going?”

“Le Bernardin.” Blaine replies matter of factly.

“Oh God! That’s Isabelle’s favorite place. Did you know that last year they–” Kurt is saying when his phone starts to ring interrupting whatever he was about to say. Raising his hand to let his fiance know he will continue in a moment, he takes out his phone from his satchel and frowns confused. The screen reads, _‘Santana Lopez’_. Looking at his fiance he states, “It’s Santana”

Blaine frowns, getting confused too by the late night call, and Kurt shrugging slides his finger through the screen. The moment the line connects the excited voice of the Latina resounds through the phone.

_“Hey Lady-Hummel! Guess what? You’re talking to the next big T.V. star! Yep, that’s right, I’m so going to beat Berry!”_

Kurt’s eyes open widely and with a hint of surprise evident in his voice he asks, “What?”

The new T.V. star chuckles through the phone, _“You heard me! I’m the new star this country was waiting for! I landed the lead role at the new T.V show I told you about!”_

The tall man starts to jump excited as he listens to the great news his friend is sharing. Blaine, looking at his fiance’s sudden display of excitement, asks in a whisper, “What happened?”

Kurt, covering the speaker and ignoring Santana’s rambling about the role, murmurs, “She landed the role on the T.V. show she told us about!” Blaine’s eyes open in excitement too and Kurt returns his attention to the girl on the other side of the line, “Santana? Wait! Blaine is here with me and we both want to hear everything about it. Give me two seconds, okay? I’ll put you on speaker”

_“Okay, but hurry up! You’re wasting my minutes!”_

Kurt rolls his eyes and quickly taps the speaker button, “Okay, now we both are listening! Tell us everything about it!”

“Well, you guys already know that I auditioned a couple of weeks ago for the role, and I swear I had a hunch I had done great, but the freaking call took forever. Anyways, it turns out that everybody, and by everybody I mean Rachel, already knew I had landed the role since Monday! But she didn’t tell me and today Brandy, my publicist, called and let me know about the role and I have an appointment tomorrow morning to sign my contract!”

“Oh my God, Santana! That’s amazing! Congratulations! You really deserve it! I’m sure you’re going to kill that part; and how’s that that Rachel didn’t tell you?” Blaine asks.

 _“Thank you Fairy Face! And you know Berry…She can’t handle a little of competition”_ Santana adds with her sarcastic tone.

Kurt and Blaine laugh and the blue-eyed man adds, “I’m so happy for you Santana! I know how hard you’ve worked for that opportunity and I’m looking forward to see that show! As Blaine already said, you’re going to kill that part!”

_“Aww…Thank you Neil Patrick Harris”_

Blaine points to the watch in his right hand showing his love they are running late. Kurt realizing his fiance is right nods and they resume their walking as the Latina continues, _“And what’s with you guys? How’s New York?”_

“We’re good, missing you girls sometimes, but we can’t lie, we’re very happy to finally be living alone…We’re really enjoying our time together” Blaine smiles at what Kurt is saying and quickly kisses his fiance’s cheek.

 _“I don’t want to imagine what happens inside that apartment! It’s probably like Brokeback Mountain in that apartment. Ew!”_ Santana shudders at the thought.

Kurt laughs and making fun of his friend shoots back, “Nothing you haven’t pretended not to hear before.”

Santana exclaims alarmed, _“You did not say that! Gross!”_ Kurt and Blaine look at each other, trying to suppress their smiles.

“Anyways…I have some good news to share too…” Kurt smiles, almost bursting with excitement.

 _“Wait. Let me guess, you’re pregnant!”_ The woman says trying to sound serious over the phone.

Blaine and Kurt roll their eyes, but can’t help but smile at the dark humor of the Latina.

“I was promoted at Vogue!” Kurt exclaims proudly.

 _“You what?”_ Santana asks clearly surprised.

“I was promoted! I’m the new Fashion Week director at Vogue.com!”

The Latina chuckles, _“Are you kidding me? The New York Fashion Week? For real?”_

“Yep” Kurt’s smile is evident through the phone. ** **  
****

Santana, still not quite believing the great news murmurs, _“But, that-that’s like your dream come true! I mean that and Broadway but still…Really Kurt, I’m happy for you.”_

Kurt smiles warmly because what the Latina is saying is nothing but the truth.  The guys arrive to the steel and glass framed entrance of the restaurant and stay outside while Santana says, _“Let me put you on speaker too because Gay-Berry and Britt-Britt are here too and they keep asking me what you’re saying and I can’t concentrate…”_

Rachel and Brittany’s voices sound through the phone and Blaine and Kurt smile warmly because hell, they miss their friends so much. ** **  
****

 _“Hi guys!”_ Rachel exclaims

 _“Unicorns!”_ Brittany yelps out excitedly. _“I miss you guys.”_

“Hi girls! We miss you all too.” Kurt and Blaine reply at the same time and Rachel unable to contain her curiosity asks, _“What happened? Santana is not telling us anything! What’s with the New York Fashion Week?”_

“Well…I was promoted as the new Fashion Week director! This fall I will be covering the event for Vogue.com!” Kurt brags a little and has to immediately cover the speaker of the phone because the pitch scream coming through it resounds loudly, and the people around them are staring at them wondering what’s happening.

“Girls, I would really like to keep this conversation going for hours, but Blaine made some reservations and we’re going to celebrate my new position and we’re already late!” Kurt explains already walking toward the revolving glass door of the fancy restaurant.

Rachel huffs and gives a small pout, _“Okay, fine! We’re celebrating Santana too so we understand…But you’ll have to call us later!”_

“I’ll call you guys tomorrow.” Kurt promises.

_“Okay, that sounds good!”_

After a new round of mutual congratulations, the girls say their last goodbyes and Kurt cuts the call and clings to his fiance’s arm as they step into the restaurant.

Santana presses the red _‘end call’_ button on her phone’s screen before looking up and saying, “I think we have to make a new toast to our new free pass to the New York Fashion Week this fall!” As she reaches for her champagne glass.

Rachel looks at Santana, wondering where she just hid her phone since it is no longer in her hand. Shrugging her shoulders she reaches for her glass and raises it up next to the others clicking it with the two women sitting across from her. The three women bring their glasses to their lips to take a sip.

Setting their glasses down on the cloth covered table, Rachel looks up from her glass and sees Wesley shrugging off his tux jacket and walking towards them. “Wes! Over here!” She stands up and waves at him, trying to gain his attention. Brittany and Santana look around trying to see who she’s talking to. Seeing the man advancing towards the table Santana leans over to her girlfriend’s and asks in a whisper, “Is that Wesley?” sounding surprised. Brittany looks over her shoulder to the handsome man and shrugs her shoulders back at the shorter woman, “I guess.” Rachel continues to wave her hands as she practically jumps up and down, causing the people at the tables around them to stare.

“Why does she have to scream?” Brittany whispers to Santana.

“‘Cause she’s Rachel…” Santana trails off as the brown haired man approaches the table. Standing in front of the table next to Rachel, and with his hands behind his back, he does a simple bow of his head as he greets, “Good evening ladies.”

“Oh, so this is Santana.” Rachel points to the Latina as she introduces her to Wesley. “And her girlfriend Brittany.” She points over to the blonde. ** **  
****

He shoots them a crooked smile, “It’s nice to finally meet both of you.” He then lifts one hand from behind his back and pulls out a bouquet of flowers with an arrangement of white lilies, red roses, and green poms. Handing them over to Santana he says, “These are for the new star.”

Santana arches a confused eyebrow at the man looking him over before a smile slowly spreads across her lips as she murmurs, “Um, wow. Thank You.”

Wesley gives her a smile and a small nod before turning and pulling his other hand from behind his back. “And don’t think I forgot about the other two beautiful ladies…” He says extending a white lily to Brittany, who smiles and gives him a shy, “Thank you”. He then turns to Rachel and offers her a single red rose. He leans in and kisses her cheek before helping her back to her chair and then sitting down himself.

“Yeah, yeah Prince Charming that was nice, just watch it. That’s my girl and you’re totally making me look bad.” She gives him a playful smirk to show she was kidding since her voice sounds dead serious. Wesley looks from her to Rachel with a shocked expression, worried he may have overstepped some boundary. His girlfriend quickly shakes her head and says, “She’s kidding. That’s Santana for you, you’ll get used to it after a while.”

“That’s what you think Hobbit, but you better keep an eye on your man.” Santana says not bothering to look up from her and Brittany’s menu. Wesley looks between the girls completely confused.

A waiter makes his way over to the table to take their order. After writing down their order for the prawns appetizer the waiter makes his way over to Brittany. Leaning down he softly whispers, “Do you want us to bring over more tables now or are we still waiting?” Brittany whispers her answer quietly saying that they could go ahead and bring the additional tables out.

Santana looks to her girlfriend, “Additional tables?” She asks.

Smiling to her lover, Brittany responds, “Yeah! we’re celebrating!”

The brunette lets out a chuckle, “Well yes babe, but who else is joining us apart from Toucan Sam and her knight in shining armor?” Wes turns to look at Rachel when he hears Santana’s new nickname for him and Rachel gives him an apologetic look mouthing, _‘Later’_.

Brittany replies, “Oh! I invited some friends to celebrate!”

Santana turns her head to Brittany and speaks quietly as if she was trying to hide what she is saying, “But…I don’t really have any friends in L.A. besides you and Rachel.”

Brittany smiles a loving smile to the brunette to her left and says, “Yeah, I know. But you should have tons of people here to celebrate with you. So, I invited some of my friends. Plus, I talk about you all the time to them, so it’s like they’re your friends too, right?” she questions innocently hoping the brunette wouldn’t be upset.

“Yeah, of course Britt-Britt. Thanks.” She leans over and captures the blonde’s bottom lip between hers. Hearing Rachel cough into her hand Santana reluctantly pulls away. After taking a quick sip of her champagne she says, “–And just to be clear…I don’t have friends because I’ve been really busy…You know with auditions and stuff..” She trails off and Rachel sees the opportunity to jump in adding, “More like because you’re a bitch.”

Wesley eyes go wide at Rachel’s comment and he turns to the Latina, expecting to see the infamous _‘Snix’_ Rachel has told him about. Instead Santana just laughs and says, “Aww, thank you Gay-Berry.”

Both woman laugh as Wesley looks over to Brittany for clarification and she smiles to him, nudging him with her elbow, “Don’t worry they are always like this, it’s sorta how they express their love for each other. You‘ll get used to it.”

Wesley smiles a friendly smile back at her as they fall easily into conversation; while Santana and Rachel bicker in the background.

The moment Kurt and Blaine emerge from the revolving door they can’t help but open their mouths in awe. The place is simply beautiful. The wood beam ceiling, carefully lit with soft lights, gives the room a sense of warmth and sophistication that is undoubtedly worth every dollar it costs to eat or even breathe there.

“Gosh! This place is beautiful!” Kurt exclaims

“It is!” Blaine agrees, still looking around.

A man all groomed in a black suit smiles at them and clearing his throat he asks, “Good evening gentlemen, welcome to the Le Bernardin. Do you have a reservation?”

“Yes, we have a private table under the name of Blaine Anderson” Blaine smiles proudly.

The short man looks at his list and spotting the boys table he gestures them to where the where going to be seated, “Your guests are already waiting sir, please let me escort you to the table.”

Kurt and Blaine, following the short man, make their way through the tables. The whole place is finely decorated with translucent wood panels that divide the different spaces. Kurt and Blaine find themselves looking around trying to spot their friends. Finally, reaching the end of the place, Kurt spots one familiar face and excited he says, “There they are!”

Blaine turns around and notices that all their friends are there already chatting at a very large table. Kurt quickly scans the table, Isabelle, Chad, Miles, Shaun, and Dimitri from Vogue are there, as well as Artie, Elliott, and Dani. Jacqueline, Jessica, and Chuck from NYADA are seated there too. However, there’s a girl he doesn’t recognize. The blue eyed man quickly turns around to face his fiance and mouths , “Who’s she?”. Blaine shrugs as the groomed man points them to the table, “Your waiter will be here in a minute to take your order, please enjoy” Kurt and Blaine smile as they walk to the table.

When the group notices the couple approaching the table Isabelle immediately stands up and looking at Blaine she says, “You must be Blaine, right?” Blaine nods smiling and Isabelle’s face lights up, “I’m so glad to finally meet you!! I thought we wouldn’t meet until the wedding!”

Blaine laughs and adds, “I know! Kurt has told me so much about you! It’s nice to finally meet his fairy godmother in person!”

“Likewise! I think everyone at the office are curious to know who’s the mysterious Blaine Anderson! Right guys?” Isabelle beams a playful smile from Blaine then to her employees. giving them a wink.

Blaine blushes a little and Kurt, smiling at his friends just says, “I see you already know each other, so you saved me one awkward introduction. Anyways, for all of you who doesn’t know this man.” he adds pointing to Blaine, “This is Blaine Anderson, my other half.” ** **  
****

Blaine unable to contain his smile leans over and quickly kisses Kurt’s cheek causing the whole table to exclaim, _“Aww.”_ at the same time.

Artie, looking at his friends and back to the table, he explains to the rest of the group, “These two are always super cute. Since we were in high school they were always like that…singing to each other and smiling all the time with silly displays of love”

Kurt and Blaine look at each other with sweet smiles as Artie continues, “By the way guys, I already introduced her to the rest of the table, but you guys don’t know her yet. This is Madison, Madison Brooks…”

Blaine immediately extends his hand to say hi to Madison and quickly looking at Artie he asks, “The girl who’s going to play Kelly?”

Artie and Madison say at the same time, “The very same,” causing the whole table to burst into laugh.

“Are you two dating?” Kurt asks once he notices the exchange of conspiratorial smiles.

Artie a bit ashamed, and lowering his gaze just replies, “Umm…Something like that…” Kurt frowns confused and deciding not to ask any further grabs Blaine’s hand and they take their seats next to Elliott.

The group quickly resumes their respective conversations, Kurt and Elliott immediately start to catch up. A waiter arrives to the table and Blaine asks, “Guys! Are you ready to order?”

The table mumbles their words of agreement and start ordering their food. Blaine, noticing Kurt and Elliott seem to be lost in conversation, interrupts and asks, “Elliot…Kurt! What do you want to order?”

Elliott and Kurt immediately turn around and the talented NYU student ponders for a moment, “Ummm I think I’ll go with the Dover Sole” Kurt scans quickly the menu and not knowing what to order he replies, “Whatever you’re going to eat…”

Blaine shifts uncomfortably and stutters, “Umm…I–I’m not that hungry, so I was thinking to just ask for the Mesclun Salad”

“Well, I’m hungry, so I guess that I’ll have the umm…” He struggles scanning again the menu, “…The Halibut, whatever that is.”

Blaine laughs, and looking back to the waiter he orders the food. The waiter gives a polite nod and while still making some notes in his order’s book, he asks, “And for the wine sir?”

Blaine quickly looks the wine card, “Ummm…whatever the sommelier suggests.”

The waiter nods again and walks away. They all resume their conversations and Kurt grabbing his love’s hand under the table, whispers, “Thank you for this honey” Blaine smiles and leaning over to kiss his man, he returns the whisper, “You’re welcome” as he quickly presses his lips against Kurt’s.

The table at L.A. Prime is full now that Brittany’s three friends showed up, filling the other chairs on ends of the table. Everyone easily fell into conversation. Rachel and Wesley are talking to Amanda about the new coaches on The Voice. Brittany has one hand in Santana’s lap as she laughs and talks with Amy the owner of The Unknown is Known dance studio. While Santana animatedly talks with their neighbor Sadie.

Santana looks around the table as she switches back and forth in conversations with everyone. With a smile on her face she places her hand on top of Brittany’s, which is still resting on her right thigh, and gives it a light squeeze. The blonde turns to her girlfriend and smiles at the smile spread over tanned cheeks. “Are you having fun?”

The shorter woman’s smile grows in realization that she is actually having a blast with Rachel and a few random strangers. “Yeah,  I am…Thank You again, Britt. How did I get so lucky?” She sends her girlfriend a wink, causing the blonde to blush.

—–

In New York City, the dinner at Le Bernardin is flowing smoothly. The waiter arrives bringing a tray full of desserts and they all start chatting while enjoying the elaborated desserts. Kurt looks over at Blaine who seems to be lost in conversation with Artie and Madison about some indie film and interrupting he sweetly demands, “Honey, open your mouth.”

Blaine turns around a bit confused and with a questioning brow he asks, “Why?”

Kurt laughs, and lifting a spoon full with what looks like cake he flirts, “You need to taste this..What was the name? Oh yeah, hazelnut praline! It’s delicious!” Blaine laughs and Kurt continues, “I know you said you didn’t want a whole slice just for yourself, but that doesn’t mean you can’t help me finish mine.”

Blaine, after some seconds of hesitation, opens his mouth humoring his fiance and letting him to feed him. The blue eyed man smiles warmly and as Blaine is savoring the cake he asks, “Isn’t it delicious?”

His fiance gives him a tender smile while Artie cuts in, “By the way Kurt, what’s going to happen with your job at the spotlight diner? Are you still going to work there?”

Kurt shakes his head and taking another bite of the cake explains, “No, I quit today after the meeting at Vogue. Gunther was not happy about it at first because after Rachel and Santana quit I pretty much was in charge of everything, but I told him about the new job and I think he understood.”

Artie pouts, “That sucks because now we will have to pay for the extra drinks and the desserts! It was nice when you guys worked there…Eating was definitely cheaper.” he says with a fake pout as the rest of the table laughs loudly.

—–

Everyone’s conversations are brought to a halt when Rachel stands up and clinks the side of her champagne glass with her fork. “Now that we all are here together, I would like to propose a toast…” She turns around and looks directly at Santana, as the Latina whispers under her breath, “Great, here she goes making me regret inviting her.”

“Santana…I know we have had our differences in the past but you are truly a good and loyal friend. You may have strange ways of going about thing-”

“Wait, is this a congratulatory speech or are you just trying to piss me off?”

“Will you just listen please?” Rachel waits until she gets a nod from the other brunette, “Okay, thank you…As I was saying, you make have strange ways of going about things, but it’s because you love big and you love hard. I guess what I’m getting at is, Santana you are extremely talented and even though that sometimes scares the competitive side of me you deserve this…And I know you will do an amazing job, I’m lucky to call you a friend.” She raises her glass in the air and continues, “So, here’s a toast to congratulate the amazingly talented, one and only, Santana Lopez.”

—–

Isabelle stands up and raising her glass she announces, “Your attention please!” The whole group immediately turns around and Isabelle continues her toast, “I want to propose a toast to our new Fashion Week director. Since I had the pleasure of meeting him, I knew he had a keen eye for fashion so this promotion was a matter of time…Have I ever told you about his first interview?” The blonde asks as everyone at the table shake their heads.

Isabelle continues, “Well, it’s a funny story…Many of you believe I gave him the position because of that famous hippo broach, and though that helped, it was really his great charisma; and keen eye for fashion that led me to believe in him. Anyways…I was telling you about his first interview…I was behind this clothing rack when a boy entered my office whispering a shy _‘hello’,_ and I literally came out from the clothes and exclaimed _‘Columbus_!’, and he looked at me so confused that I had to immediately cleared up that I was talking about places in Ohio. And he was like _‘Oh!’_ You should have seen him! He was such a shy boy, and I guess he was also terrified, but as soon as we started talking about fashion he relaxed, that’s when I really saw his potential. But, I’m sharing this story because what I really want to bring back tonight is what you told me that day Kurt…Do you remember?”

Kurt nods and Isabelle with a sweet smile adds, “I asked him to wave his magic wand and told me where would he be in four years. And do you know what he replied?” She asks to the group who are shaking their heads again.

“He said and I’m quoting, _‘Working here part time, graduating from NYADA and starting my first Broadway show’_ …” Isabelle quotes and beams at her star pupil while Kurt smiles at the memory the blonde continues, “…And you know what Kurt? Tonight we’re celebrating that you already reached one of those three wishes and you still have two years to go. I told you that day that this city was for dreamers and I encouraged you to dream higher…And having the chance to seeing you achieve those dreams is more than I ever could have asked for. I don’t want to start the emotional speech, so I just want to wish you many more celebrations like this and please…Never stop believing in yourself…”

—–

Rachel smiles and raising her glass higher, she says “…To Santana! Congratulations!”

—–

Isabelle smiles and raising her glass higher, she says, “…To Kurt! Congratulations!”

—–

Everyone else raises their glasses in the air and repeats a mixture of “Congratulations!” and “To Santana!” causing everyone to laugh as they take a sip of their drink of choice. Brittany gazes over to Santana and can’t help but smile with pride, love and adoration for the Latina. She taps on the top of her lovers hand, that is now resting on her leg, to gain the brunette’s attention.

—–

The rest of the group raise their glasses and exclaim, “To Kurt!” followed by an overwhelming series of “Congratulations”, “You deserve this” and “We’re so happy for you”. Blaine grabs Kurt’s hand and squeezes it tightly. The shorter man hugs his fiance from behind and a proud smile crosses his face as he rest his head on the tallest man.

—–

Brittany and Blaine look deep into their lovers eyes and leaning over for a kiss they whisper, “I’m so proud of you!” into their other halves’ lips causing Kurt and Santana to blush and close the distance between them and their lover’s lips.


	5. Surprise

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on the Glee Fan Project...Rachel got upset when she overheard Santana landed a lead role on a new T.V show in her network...Congratulations Santana! Sam and Mercedes tried to get to know the new versions of themselves and Sam kissed Mercedes, but then ran off, so now she’s super confused about the signals Sam is giving her… Aren’t we all!? Brittany told Santana she wanted to open up her own dance studio but she was afraid to fail, Santana told her she will help her make her dreams come true and now they are looking for a place...Awesome right? Kurt got promoted to Fashion Week Director at Vogue after he thought he’d never get the job so now he’ll be really busy, will he be able to keep up with the rest of his life? Anyways, the L.A and New York gangs celebrated the good news with each other and finished the night toasting to Kurt and Santana in celebration!...Way to go guys!...And that’s what you missed on Glee!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the fifth episode! As we announced via tumblr this episode is all about surprises so we really, really encourage you to finish it even if what you're reading doesn't make any sense. It will make sense eventually, we can promise you that. We just wanted to give you all what you wanted and since some things can't happen due to canon/plot reasons, we found a different way to make all your dreams come true. Anyways, as usual here’s a link to the intro video and the Episode 5 playlist of songs in case we included a song that you may not have heard of. Remember that we wrote the characters singing these songs with their own vocal arrangements in mind that’s why some of these songs are covers and some are the originals. We hope you enjoy them!

Intro video

[Episode 5 Playlist](http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv_rvGfxbXKPxFu920F5Ep8b629A0LrXe)

 

Kurt rolls over in his shared bed and reaches an arm out to the opposite side to look for a warm body. Feeling the empty spot next to him, he opens his eyes and scans the room and is met with silence and stale air. Kurt quickly sits up and lets the sheets fall around his waist. Looking back over to the empty side, he notices something he didn’t before. Picking up a small note that lays on his lover’s pillow, he flips it over and reads. _‘Morning Honey! Meet you at Bluebird Coffee Shop. XOXO’_

Frowning, Kurt sets the piece of paper down on his nightstand. He swings his legs over to the side of the bed and then stands up. Walking to his closet he pulls out his day’s attire. After getting dressed and slipping on his shoes, he walks out the loft door, closing it behind him and walking down the steps out into the traffic of bodies walking down the sidewalk.

After weaving his way down the crowded city, Kurt stops in front of the heavy black wooden door. He reaches forward and pulls it over quickly scanning the place and spotting his boyfriend off to the right, sitting at a small round table. He walks the short distance and stops in front of the other man. “Hey, Honey.” Kurt says as the green-eyed man looks up and smiles a crooked smile, “Hey, there, cutie!” Sebastian says as he leans over to kiss his boyfriend.

Kurt sits down and while he places his satchel in one of the empty chairs Sebastian asks, “What do you want to drink?"

Kurt frowns and replies, “Umm...Whatever you’re drinking…”

Sebastian, looking at his purple drink says, “Well, I’m drinking a grape macchiato.” Kurt frowns confused because that’s the first time he has ever heard about that type of drink and yeah it doesn’t sound delicious. “I don’t know what that is…”

Sebastian chuckles, “You’re kidding right? We had one of this last week and you said it was your favorite!”

“Oh right! Well I don’t think it’s my favorite anymore. I guess I’ll just have a nonfat mocha” Kurt adds standing up.

While the blue-eyed man is waiting in line he takes out his phone and starts scrolling down his pictures. There are millions of pictures of him and Sebastian all over New York City and he looks somehow happy, but what is really getting his attention are the clothes he’s wearing. None of them resemble his usual attires, in fact not even the clothes he’s wearing right now resemble his usual attire. After ordering his drink, Kurt walks back to the table and while sitting down he asks Sebastian, “Ummm maybe this is going to sound strange, but remind me again, why did I stop wearing colorful and bedazzled clothes? While waiting in line I was scrolling down at our pictures and I noticed that my fashion tastes have changed a lot…”

Sebastian looking all lovely at his boyfriend just replies, “Because I asked you honey…” Causing Kurt to frown even more confused. Sebastian continues, “...And talking about colorful clothes...I ran into your ex today at school...”

“Really?” Kurt asks taking a sip of his coffee.

“Yeah, he was walking into his _Classic Ear Training_ class” Sebastian casually comments.

“I talked to him yesterday and I think he’s okay. He’s happy. I think that changing his major and transferring to Juilliard really helped him. Well that and Elliott.” Kurt continues frowning a little. It was still hard to understand how his ex and New York’s best friend had ended up together.

“Yeah, I think we’re finally with the right people...Don’t you think?” The former Warbler asks while grabbing Kurt’s hand.

Kurt still a bit distracted asks, “We?”

Sebastian, giving his boyfriend a sweet smile, adds, “Yeah...You and I, Blaine and your friend Elliott, and all your other glee friends”

Kurt, smiling slightly agrees, “Yeah, you’re right, though I still find it hard to believe. I mean, last month things were completely different. I was engaged, Rachel had a new boyfriend, Mercedes was trying to get Sam back, Brittany and Santana were in their honey-moon phase living in L.A., Artie was sort of dating this new Madison girl and Quinn and Puck were doing great with the whole long distance relationship, but now everything is upside down…”

Sebastian, kissing his boyfriend’s hand, says, “...But it was for the best…”

Kurt smiles warmly and shrugging he replies, “Yeah...I guess…”

Sebastian leans over and presses his lips against Kurt’s. The blue eyed man kisses him back and just when the kiss is about to intensify a phone rings. “Sorry...It’s my phone’ Kurt says smiling. Sebastian huffs and Kurt unlocking his phone exclaims, “Crap!”

“What is it?” Sebastian asks alarmed.

Kurt, already standing up and grabbing his satchel replies, “I need to go pick up Santana and Dani at the airport...do you want to come?”

The other man joins his boyfriend in getting up from the table and grabs Kurt’s hand. Kurt smiles and hand in hand, they walk out the small coffee shop.

 

Sebastian and Kurt arrive to the JFK airport. The big terminal is buzzing as usual, as people come and go between crystal gates. Kurt looks around and immediately starts walking to the arrivals screens to check his friends’ flight status. Sebastian, who’s still holding his boyfriend’s hand, asks, “Are you sure they are arriving at this terminal?”

“Yep...Dani texted me…” Kurt says, “Besides the screen says that their flight just landed so they must be here any minute now…”

In that moment a raspy voice yells from the other side of the terminal, “Kurty!”

Kurt’s eyes open widely and in a whisper he asks the man besides him, “What did she just call me?”

“Umm...Kurty?” Sebastian replies confused.

“That’s the weirdest nickname I’ve ever heard. I thought she really enjoyed calling me Lady-Hummel, Gay-Lips, and Lance Bass…The list goes on.” Kurt said while the girls walk over them.

“Hi, girls! It’s so nice to see you!” Kurt exclaims while very quickly the four friends give each other welcome hugs

“You both look good!” Dani compliments her friends. Kurt blushes slightly and Sebastian just gives her his crooked smile.

“Thanks Dani, you two do too...And tell us how was your trip to Miami?” Kurt asks.

A very excited pink-haired girl replies, “Oh, it was amazing! We had so much fun! Right babe?” Dani asks and Santana just nods smiling, “San’s family joined us in our last few days there and we went parasailing! It was amazing! You should have seen abuela Alma when she was in the air! It was hilarious and--”

“Wait! Wait! Wait!” Kurt interrupts, “Your abuela was there?” He asks confused looking at the Latina.

Santana gives Kurt a confused look, “Yeah...Why?”

Kurt hesitates for a minute, “I thought that-that...Never mind…” He trails off, “Are you ready to go?”

Sebastian looking at his phone exclaims, “No wait! We can’t go just yet...Sam just texted me and their plane just landed too…”

Kurt turns around with a shock expression and facing his boyfriend he asks, “Since when you’re friends with Sam?”

Still looking at his phone’s screen, Sebastian shrugs, “Umm, since last month when we started dating?” Kurt looks to his boyfriend with a very confused expression. Sam has been Blaine’s best friend since their senior year of high school and he can’t fathom the idea of Sebastian being friends with his ex’s best friend. But now here he was, witnessing the blonde haired man texting his new month long boyfriend. “--and what about Blaine?”

“What about him?” Sebastian questions, confused as to why the bowtie man has to be mentioned.

“Well I just mean Sam was Blaine’s best friend, how is it that he’s so cool with you and me dating now?”

“From what I heard Blaine told him not to be rude and to try to be supportive, or something, we got to talking and really hit it off….He’s a funny guy.”

Kurt cocks his head to the side letting everything sink in. Nothing makes sense to him. It seems that in just one month everything turned upside down. Shrugging his shoulders, he decides to let it go as he reaches a hand out and grabs Sebastian’s hand as they start to walk to the other gate where Sam told Sebastian they will be waiting.

As Kurt and Sebastian walk hand in hand with Santana and Dani trialing beside them with their bags, Kurt overhears Sebastian talking to Dani. “I really like what you’ve done to you hair. It takes focus off the fact that you’ve gained some weight.”

Hearing the offensive words slip from the taller boy’s lips Santana steps closer to him to defend her girlfriend, but Dani pipes in and stops her, “Don’t worry S, let the cute boy say whatever he wants.” Santana gives Dani a pointed look before shaking her head and looking away. When she turns her head she sees Brittany running out of the terminal with Sam following with their bags close behind.

“Warblers! Ladies!” The blonde woman yells as she runs up and hugs Kurt and Sebastian saying her hello’s. After hugging the two boys, she turns to the other two women standing there. Without a second thought, she wraps her arms around Dani hugging her and then turning and doing the same with Santana.Sam finally makes his way to the rest of the group. Shaking everyone’s hand, he then steps back to where Brittany stands and puts his hand on the small of her back while kissing her on the cheek.

“Well, well. Don’t you move on fast little missy?” Kurt speaks up remembering how just a month ago the blonde was dating the Latina and now they both were with other people and that seems strange to him. But then again he did the same thing so he guesses he can’t really be the one to judge.

 “We’ll always be friends.” Brittany says looking towards Santana who smiles and shake her head and almost in a sad tone replies to Brittany’s comment, “Yeah of course, but the relationship just wasn’t working…”

Kurt looks between the two former lovers and skeptically says, “Yeah…Okay. Well let’s go I wanna beat the traffic.”

“Wait. You have a car?” Santana stops the group to quiz the love bird.

“Yeah?” Kurt questions back.

 “Oh! It’s just you always said something about being a true New Yorker and embracing it all by taking cabs and the subway, and now you’re driving a car?”

“Oh, yeah, I guess a lot of things have changed lately.” Kurt mentions, not only referring to himself.

The group of friends and lovers make their way to the front entrance and towards the parking garage. Santana’s fingers are laced with Dani’s while Sam rests his hand on Brittany’s back as they pushed through the crowd of people. Kurt and Sebastian follow quickly behind them with Sebastian's arm over Kurt’s shoulder as the shorter man rest his head on his boyfriend’s shoulder.

Kurt slides the door of the loft and finds the whole place decorated for a birthday party. Confused, the blue-eyed man turns around to look at his boyfriend and friends and asks, “A birthday party? Whose birthday is it?”

Sebastian leaning over and  kissing Kurt’s cheek he whispers, “Yours honey,” As he walks into the loft.

Kurt stands there by the door looking around while all his friends make themselves at home. Walking toward the kitchen he asks Sebastian again, “If today is my birthday, how is it that you weren’t there with me when I woke up?”

“I had some things to do…You said you didn’t mind.” Sebastian replies as he takes out some beers from the fridge. Kurt frowns and Sebastian asks, “Are you okay?”

Kurt nods, “Yeah… I’m fine…go have fun.” Sebastian smiles and walks away to immediately start chatting with Sam.

Kurt looks at both men and can’t help but frown again. Something about that friendship doesn’t look good. Exhaling defeated, Kurt takes a seat at the kitchen table and starts to think about the recent events. _‘What’s wrong? I mean, I forgot my own birthday! For heaven’s sake!’_ He’s deep in thought when a voice brings him back to the reality.

“Are you okay?” Santana asks leaning her back against the counter and crossing her arms facing Kurt.

Kurt looks up and sharing his thoughts he adds, “I forgot my own birthday, can you believe that?”

Santana laughs and nodding she says, “You’ve been distracted lately…”

Kurt chuckles, “Yeah, since that promotion a lot of things have changed…”

Santana is about to reply when Brittany walks to the table and all excited starts to point to her phone, “It’s Cedes and Mike!! They are calling from Chicago!!”

Kurt smiles and Santana softly tells her former lover, “That’s great Britt say hi for us to the new lovebirds, okay?” Brittany nods and quickly runs over to the couch to share the news with Sam.

“These new relationships are still hard to believe don’t you think?” Kurt asks

“Yeah, I guess you’re right a lot of things have really changed…”

Kurt fakes a smile and lowers his gaze again. Santana noticing her friend’s reaction can tell that something is wrong, so she pushes further, “Are you really okay? You look weird, is everything okay with Sebastian?”

He thinks for a minute, then, without looking up replies, “Yeah I guess so…”

“I’m not gonna lie Kurt, when I found out you two were dating I was really surprised. I mean last month you were teasing about your sex life with Blaine, and now you’re living with this guy? I’m sorry, but that is hard to believe. And not because you’re not allowed to date again. On the contrary, but him? He’s a bully! He threw a slushie in my face!”

Kurt rolls his eyes, “That’s in the past Santana…He’s not like that anymore! Plus you’re one to talk. You’re a bully!”

Santana shrugs simply, “Well maybe you’re right…And I can see he has changed, but still don’t trust him one hundred percent okay?”

Kurt nods and trying to change the subject he says, “But tell me about you…Are you happy with Dani now?”

“Yeah, we’re still getting used to each other. But I guess moving in together was the best decision and the trip to Miami really helped…” The Latina replies smiling.

Kurt gives his friend a sweet smile and asks, “…Are you okay with Sam and Brittany trying to validate their fake marriage?”

Santana laughs a little, “Yeah, she’s going to be my best friend forever, so I’m happy as long as she’s happy, and Sam seems to really make her smile…look” She turns around to see her ex girlfriend and Sam, who are laughing at something they are watching on Sam’s phone.

In that moment Dani walks by and hugs Santana from behind, “What are you two doing here?”

“Just catching up…” Kurt smiles at Dani, erasing any thoughts she may of had thinking something was wrong.

Sebastian walks to the kitchen too and pulling Kurt’s hand he encourages his boyfriend to have fun, “Come with us! The party is there not here in the kitchen!”

“We’ll join you in a minute. I’m talking to my friend…”

Sebastian, pulling harder says, “No! Stand up Kurt! You can talk to her later!”

Kurt just wanting his five minutes of air snaps, “No! I said I’ll be there in a minute!” The usually level-headed man snaps.

Dani, sensing the change in the atmosphere releases Santana and tries to relieve the tension, “Don’t worry handsome. I’ll go with you and keep you some company. Our respective lovers will join us in a minute…” And clinging from Sebastian’s arm they both walk back to the living room where the rest of the group is chatting.

As soon as Dani and Sebastian are far from listening anything, Santana turns to a still upset Kurt and sneers, “At least the other one gave you some space. This guy is all over you the whole time!”

Kurt nods and cast his eyes down to his shoes. He knows that what Santana just said is true. Blaine knew that Kurt sometimes needed his five minutes break from everyone, including him and Sebastian was different. He’s thinking about how different things are now when Santana asks, “And are you even excited about this whole party?”

“Yeah…You could say that. You know I hate surprises, but Sebastian is trying really hard to please me, so I guess I’ll have to show some excitement.” The blue-eyed man says faking the biggest smile on his face.

Santana laughs and in that moment the door of the loft slides open and Quinn, Artie and Wesley walk in. Santana looking at the trio murmurs, “I still can’t believe Quinn and Wes are dating…Like how did that happen?”

Kurt shares a smile with the Latina and a look that told her he was thinking the same thing. Without replying he stands up to greet his friends. When he notices Artie is alone, he asks, “Where’s Tina, Artie?”

“Kurt! Happy Birthday!…And Tina really wanted to come but she has an exam tomorrow. She said she would call you tonight!”

Kurt smiles and Santana, standing up, asks, “And how things are working between you two?”

Artie smiles broadly and joins the rest of the group he boasts, “Perfect! We’re very happy…Thank you!”

Santana and Kurt smile at their friends when Sebastian yells, “Let’s dance” as he turns up the volume of a very up beat song.

The music in the loft bounces off the walls as all the guests dance around the open space. Kurt stands off to the side leaning on a wooden beam watching the scene in front of him. Looking closely as his friends dance, he notices how they all look as if they were drunk, but he knows for a fact that no one has started drinking yet.

He’s lost just watching the party flow smoothly when a male voice exclaims, “Alright the party can start! Puck-a-Saurus is here!” Puck yells through the room as he walks into the loft with his arm draped over Rachel’s shoulder.

The group of friends turn around and smile at the new guests. Rachel quickly scans the room and her eyes meet Quinn and Wesley’s. With a serious tone she turns around and speaking to Sebastian she snaps, “You didn’t tell us _they_ would be here too!”

Sebastian murmurs, “Oops,” and shrugging he just gives Rachel an apologetic smile.

Quinn, wanting to pick a fight, stands up and walks to the door to face Rachel, “What is it Berry? You have a problem?”

Getting mad at Quinn’s attitude Rachel snaps, “Actually, yes! You and that jerk over there are my problem!”

Quinn pulls away from Wesley, who is standing next to her, and takes a step closer to Rachel, “Oh yeah? Well, guess what? I don’t like you either!”

The T.V. star laughs at Quinn’s attitude before yelling, “You’re such a bitch!”

Quinn’s eyes open wide and folding the sleeves of her leather jacket she snaps back, “Do you want to see how much of a bitch I am?”

Rachel, still with a smirk on her face replies, “Bring it on Caboosey!”

Smiling wickedly and shaking her head Quinn replies with venom laced in her voice, “You’re going to regret that!” as she practically jumps over her. The two former Glee club members start to fight and chaos fills the small apartment.

Kurt stands up alarmed and looks around trying to look for some help to stop the fight, but the whole scene just confuses him even more. He can’t understand what’s happening. Artie, who’s sitting on one side of the room has his camera in his hand and seems to be filming the fight. Brittany and Sam are making out on the couch unaware of the events taking place. Santana is looking around confused and her eyes are scanning Wes and Puck, who are chatting with each other as if their girlfriends weren’t about to rip out each others throats. Dani is trying to flirt with Sebastian while the former Warbler is ignoring her and keeps clapping along to the music loving the hectic party.

Kurt is about to say something to stop the madness when the door of the small apartment slides open again, then Mr. Schue and Shelby poke through the door and yell “Happy Birthday!!”

The group of friends stop their respective activities and turn around to see the new guests. As soon as the former Glee Club members notice Mr. Schue the chaos subsides and everything returns to normal, or what can be called normal. Kurt frowns and can’t help but think, _‘What the hell is happening here?’_

Kurt is at the kitchen table in front of a huge fancy thing that according to his eyes, looks like a cake. He’s not sure though because it looks to weird to be a real cake. Sebastian, who is next to him asks, “Ready?”

The puzzled man doesn’t turn around and just nods. He can’t help but keep his eyes fixed on the weird _‘cake’_. Sebastian takes a lighter out of his pocket and starts to light some candles. Kurt tries to count them, but for some unknown reason he can’t count more than five without forgetting the number. He looks at his boyfriend and asks, “Ummm…How many candles are on the cake? Because it’s a cake, right?”

Sebastian laughs, and turning slightly to his left he says, “Of course it’s a cake honey…And about the candles…Ummm…Does it matter?”

“Of course it matters…How many candles are on the cake Sebastian?”

Sebastian frowns, and looking into very confused big blue eyes he replies, “Ummm…I don’t know, how old are you?”

Kurt  gives his boyfriend a death glare and asks, “You’re joking right? Because you’re my boyfriend and you know my age right?”

“Do you know mine?” Sebastian questions with a laugh.

Kurt hesitates, ‘ _Do I?’_ He thinks to himself. Sebastian noticing his boyfriend’s uncertainty continues, “See? You don’t, so it doesn’t matter.”

 _‘Of course it matters!’_ Kurt exclaims to himself and in that moment he starts to analyze the man he has next to him. He’s handsome in his own way and seems to be nice, but something about this whole picture is not right. In fact, now that he thought about it, nothing about this whole day was right. Nothing made any sense.

Kurt, looking between his _‘boyfriend’_ and _‘friends’_ notices that they all look weird. The whole place looks weird. Scanning them again, he notices that they all are starting to sing the happy birthday song and he freezes. He can clearly see that all his friends are moving their lips as if they were singing, but Kurt can’t really hear them. He can only hear one voice.

Freaking out, he shakes his head. _‘I must be dreaming’_ He thinks but the voice gets clearer and a cold shiver runs through his body. He knows that voice better than anyone. It’s Blaine’s. _‘He’s here!’_ He thinks to himself again and immediately starts to look around trying to spot his face somewhere around that group, but he’s not there. The voice gets a bit louder and Kurt’s muscles clench, there has always been something in that voice that touches him deeply.

“Blaine!?” Kurt exclaims out loud, but there’s no response. He looks around trying to ask for some help to his friends, but the group are still singing unaware of Kurt’s sudden panic attack. Frowning and realizing that now the whole scene looks even more bizarre than before, Kurt looks at his friends one last time and they all seem to be moving in slow motion.

“Blaine!?” He asks again getting more scared with every passing minute.

“Blaine!? What’s happening!?” he exclaims again, but nobody seems to hear him.

“Blaine!? Where are you!?” He ask really desperate. He can still hear him, in fact his voice is getting louder and louder, but he can’t find him. And now in his desperation he realizes that he actually needs to see him. He’s afraid, and although he knows they are not together anymore, he needs him. He needs to see him.

Backing up from the weird scene he starts to follow the voice. _‘Happy birthday to you…’_ The voice is singing.

Kurt looks around, Blaine’s voice seems to come from nowhere and everywhere. _‘Happy birthday dear Kurt…'_

Kurt covers his ears, but the voice is still there echoing through his mind. He shakes his head and notices that there’s a light seeping under the loft door. He walks closer and almost whispers, “Blaine?”

There’s no response, but the voice is definitely coming from outside the apartment. Grabbing the cold metal doorknob and taking a deep breath he slides the door and a bright light hit his eyes blinding him completely.

Kurt’s eyes snap open and he immediately meets with a pair of bright hazel eyes that are looking at him with adoration. Unable to hide his relief he exclaims, “Oh thank God! It’s you! Oh God! It’s you!” He yells while clinging both his arms into the shorter man’s neck.

Blaine, raising an eyebrow in confusion, and with a playful smile asks, “I don’t know if I want to know… But were you expecting someone else?”

Kurt laughs and shakes his head frantically. Blaine smiles too and murmurs “Good.”

The birthday boy, still feeling uneasy about the nightmare, leans over to kiss his fiance. He knows he probably has horrible morning breath, but right know he needs some kind of reassurance that all that nonsense was just a dream. So not caring about those hygiene routines he deepens the kiss. Blaine kisses him back and once they split Kurt finally spills what’s going on in his head, “I had a bad dream…More like a nightmare! It was my birthday and there was this weird cake and I couldn’t count the candles, and I was hearing you sing to me–” Kurt is telling when Blaine interrupts.

“Wait! Me singing to you was the nightmare?” Blaine asks faking a wounded voice.

Kurt shakes his head again, “Of course not silly! The nightmare was that you weren’t actually there…I was dating Sebastian, Blaine! And you were with Elliott and attending Juilliard!”

“What?” Blaine asks unable to contain his laughter.

“Don’t laugh! This is serious!” Kurt exclaims patting Blaine’s chest.

Blaine presses his lips into a hard line and mutters, “Sorry…Go on…”

Kurt rolls his eyes playfully and continues, “Everything was upside down! Santana was with Dani, Mercedes with Mike, Artie with Tina, Rachel with Puck, Quinn with Wesley, and Sam and Brittany were making out in our couch!”

Blaine can’t hold it any longer and while murmuring _‘sorry’_ he bursts into laugh. Kurt rolls his eyes and starts to pout. However, deep inside he can’t help but feel a wave of relief while hearing his favorite sound in the world, his fiance’s laughter. Blaine takes a deep breath and smiling all loving at the man in front of him he says, “Sorry…I couldn’t help it. That was funny!” he apologizes for bursting into laugh when he was instructed very clearly not to do it, “And don’t worry babe…I’m not dating Elliott; and as far as I know, Sebastian is not here either”

Kurt laughs and Blaine, climbing into his still lying in bed fiance, exclaims, “Happy Birthday!”

The birthday boy smiles warmly at the man he loves, and unable to articulate anything else he whispers, “Thank you!”

Blaine leans over and gives the birthday boy a quick peck on the lips that lingered a little longer than the quick peck he was planning and asks excitedly, “What does it feel to be 21?”

While caressing his fiance’s upper arms, Kurt laughs before giving a reply, “Ummm…So far the same as 20…”

Blaine laughs and jumping into his side of the bed he teases, “Maybe after breakfast you’ll start to feel different. Don’t move…I prepared you something special” he instructs his fiance while climbing out of the bed and leaving the room.

While Blaine is gone, Kurt smiles, and breathing deeply he lets the last memories of that awful nightmare to get lost in his mind. _‘Thank heavens it was just a dream!’_ He’s thinking to himself relieved when Blaine walks back carrying a fancy decorated tray with Kurt’s breakfast.

“Breakfast in bed for the birthday boy!” Blaine exclaims with a big grin plastered on his lightly tanned face.

“Aww…Thank you! That’s so nice and smells delicious! You’re such a sweetheart!” Kurt exclaims while he gets up to sit on the bed.

Blaine places the tray in front of him and kissing his forehead, climbs to his side of the bed and sits down cross-legged as he watches his fiance start to dig into his food.

“This is delicious!” Kurt mumbles with his mouth still full of food.

“I’m glad you like it” Blaine tells his love as he lays back to relax next to Kurt.

“It’s delicious…But why aren’t you eating?”

“Because I already ate…I woke up early…” Blaine says as a matter of fact.

“Why didn’t you wake me?” Kurt asks while taking a sip of the orange juice.

“Because it’s your birthday…Today you’re allowed to sleep a bit more.”

Kurt smiles and continues eating. Blaine sits up and takes an envelope from the nightstand, “Here…take this”

The corners of Kurt’s lips tug into a slight frown, confused he asks, “What is it?”

“Your dad sent it…”

Kurt pouts and opening the envelope he wonders, “A postcard?” Blaine shrugs. Kurt looks down to the rectangular card that he has in his hands and reads out loud, “Happy birthday Kurt! I hope you have an amazing birthday! With love, Dad!”

“Really? Is that it?” Kurt asks.

Blaine shrugs again, “He’s a busy man babe…you heard him. He really wanted to come, but he had that important event…”

The mood quickly shifts and Kurt pouts, “More important than his only son turning 21?”

Blaine smiles reassuringly, and not really sure of what to say anymore, he asks, “Are you done with that?” pointing to the tray.

Kurt gives a quiet ‘yes’. He’s no longer hungry after the disappointment. Blaine moves the tray, Kurt lies down again and covers himself completely with the sheets. Blaine laughs and asks, “What are you doing?”

“Sleeping…” Kurt replies a bit grumpy. He’s sad because his father didn’t even try to make some time to visit him on his birthday.

“Sorry babe, but it’s time for you to get out of that bed!”

Kurt shakes his head and says, “I don’t want to move from here…You can join me if you want, but I’m not moving from this bed.”

Blaine laughs again at his childish man and uncovering him he adds, “I’m sorry but we have a full agenda”

“It’s my birthday! You said that today I was allowed to sleep more…I’m allowed to stay in bed all day.”

Blaine shakes his head again and grabbing a notebook and pretending to read it he says, “Sorry, we don’t have sleeping scheduled…” Kurt pouts, and Blaine, laughing just tells his fiance, “Maybe we can make some room for cuddling at night, but not now. I really wish you could stay there all day but that’s really impossible…And you have to see your first gift.”

Kurt frowns, confused, and smiling slightly he asks, “My first gift?”

Blaine smiles and nods his head. He gets out of bed before helping Kurt to stand up from bed he gushes,  “It’s waiting for you in the living room.”

Kurt smiles, and getting really curious he walks, more like runs, to the living room and finds his dad reading the newspaper. Kurt really surprised asks, “Dad?!” Burt Hummel looks up from the New York Time’s sports section and with a huge grin he exclaims, “Surprise! Happy birthday kiddo!”

Artie and Madison are strolling down East New York Avenue in Brooklyn making their way to the Imperial Hotel. Artie looks around and wonders, “Maybe we should stop at that Subway and buy some food? What do you think Madi?”

Madison, who is completely distracted asks, “What?”

Artie completely stopping his chair asks, “What’s wrong?”

“Ummm…Are you sure you want me to know all your friends?” The blonde asks.

Artie laughs and exclaims “Of course I’m sure! Why wouldn’t I be?” He questions, amused, grabbing the blonde girl’s hand.

“Well, I don’t know…So far I’ve just met Kurt and Blaine, and they were nice, but what if the others don’t like me?”

“They are going to love you Madi…Don’t worry, okay?”

“Okay.” The blonde replies smiling, “What were you saying about food?”

Artie smiles back and caressing Madison’s hand he replies, “Nothing forget it…We’re a bit late…Let’s hurry”

Artie and Madison make it to the Imperial hotel’s lobby and Artie quickly wheels to the reception desk. “Good morning miss…The elevators?” He asks.

“Down that hall to the left…” Replies a red-haired woman.

“Thank you.” Artie replies with a smile and with Madison’s help they make their way to the elevators. Once inside, Madison asks, “Which floor did you say they were?”

Artie takes out his phone and checking his text messages he replies, “Rachel said room 605 floor six”

Madison simply nods, still nervous and while pushing the respective buttons she asks, “Do you know who will be there?”

Artie shakes his head, “Not exactly, Blaine just told me some of our friends will be here…I know Rachel is here with her new boyfriend because she texted me, but I don’t know about the rest of the group. It’s kind of difficult to get all of them here so we’ll see…” He’s mid sentence when the doors of the elevator _ping_ open.

Artie and Madison are coming down the hallway when Artie spots Quinn crossing from one room to the other, followed by Brittany and Santana. The copper haired man stops rolling making Madison, who was just behind him, to crush into the chair. A bit concerned the blonde asks, “What is it?”

Artie with a shocked expression murmurs, “Oh no! It’s happening again…”

Madison frowns confused and asks, “Ummm…What’s happening again?”

Artie, still unable to articulate a coherent phrase, whispers, “The unholy trinity is back…” As some flashbacks from his former days as a high school student come to his mind.

Artie very slowly starts to move his chair towards the open door of the room. When he’s just a feet away from the door he over hears Mercedes saying, “I still find it unbelievable that we haven’t done a _Pitch Perfect_ number yet, like seriously! We could do so much better than them, don’t you think?”

Artie’s eyes open wide when hearing Rachel exclaiming, “I’m in!” Followed by an overwhelming amount of _‘me too’s’_. Starting to freak out he murmurs, “No, no, no, no, no…”

Madison, who’s still trying to process what he meant with the _‘unholy trinity is back’_ asks, “Ummm… and now what happened?”

Artie, spinning his chair some angles to be able to face the blonde, says, “I’m so sorry! I didn’t want you to meet them like this! I swear they can be normal sometimes.”

“What are you talking about?” Madison asks, completely confused.

Artie is about to reply when a soulful voice yells from inside the room, “You Artie! Get in here and join us!”

The rest of his friends reply with, _‘yeahs!’,_ And _‘okays!’_ As Artie try to guess how many of them are inside that small room.

Brittany comes out of the room and with a big smile yells, “Artie! Glad to see you” she says while quickly giving Artie a sweet kiss on the cheek. The former Cheerio grabs the chair and noticing the extra person there, she asks, “Hi! Who are you?”

Madison smiles and in a shy voice she replies, “Madison…Artie’s girlfriend.”

The other blonde smiles sweetly and giving Madison a quick hug she welcomes her, “Hi, Madison! Welcome to the group!”

Madison freezes a bit due to the warm welcome, as Brittany wheels Artie into the room.

“Artie!” Quinn exclaims quickly rushing to the door to give a quick hug to her friend. Artie hugs her back and noticing that his girlfriend is still standing awkwardly by the door he ushers her into the room, “Madi come here…”

The blonde walks shyly and Artie, grabbing her hand, announces, “Guys…I want you to meet Madison…My girlfriend. Madison, these are my friends…Mike, Tina, Brittany, Santana, Quinn, Mercedes, Rachel and I suppose this must be Wesley.”

Wesley nods giving a small wave of the hand, and Madison in her British accent says, “Hello everyone! It’s a pleasure to finally be able to meet you all! Artie has told me a lot about you and your time during high school.”

Brittany lets out a small giggle and leans over to Santana and not so discreetly asks, “Why is she talking like Hermione from Harry Potter?” Santana brings her hand up to cover her mouth trying to hide her laugh at how adorable her girlfriend is.

Everyone looks at each other with confused and shocked expressions, including Madison. Mercedes interjects the silence, “Anyways…You two arrived just in time!”

“For what?” Artie asks.

“For our group number! We wanted to sing a Pitch Perfect song and since the king of the white rappers is here I think it’s only fair that you take the lead!” Mercedes exclaims

Artie shakes his head, “I don’t think that’s a good idea.” He shyly says quickly looking at his girlfriend. Santana following Artie’s gaze comments in a cattish tone, “Look wheels, we know you want to impress barbie over here, but she’s going to find out that you are part of this bunch of dorks sooner or later.”

“Yes Artie! You’re part of the group! Sing with us!” Tina demands.

“Yeah, come on, Artie!” Mike chimes in.

Artie, realizing his friends are telling the truth and that he shouldn’t be ashamed of who he is, takes a deep breath and then lets out a breath before agreeing, “Okay…Fine. I’ll do it…Besides I haven’t told my girl here that I happen to have a great voice.”

They all laugh as Artie, making his way around the small hotel room, starts to sing.

_(Artie)…It’s going down fade to Black Street the homies go at me collab creations bump like Acne no doubt, I put it down never slouch as long as my credit could vouch a dog couldn’t catch me straight up. Tell me who could stop when Dre making moves. Attracting honeys like a magnet giving ‘em eargasms with my mellow accent still moving this flavour with homies Blackstreet and Teddy, the original rhum shakers…_

Madison looks at her boyfriend and can’t help but smile widely. She’s blown away by Artie’s talent. Meanwhile, the rest of the group are dancing and helping with background vocals as Artie, with Mercedes help, continues with the song.

_(Mercedes and Artie)…Shorty get down, good Lord. Baby got em up open all over town. Strictly biz, she don’t play around. Cover much ground got, game by the pound getting paid as a forte. Each and every day through player way. I can’t get her out of my mind. I think about the girl all the time…_

The others in the group are dancing around the room. Brittany breaks away from the circle and dances her way over to where Madison stands off to the side of the room watching the former Glee Clubbers impromptu performance. Grabbing the other blonde’s hands she sways her arms from side to side trying to loosen Madison up. The other tall blonde stands still for a second, not sure how to react. Next thing she knows she was twirling around the room and swaying her hips along with all the others.

_(Rachel and Wesley)…I like the way you work it…no diggity…I gotta bag it up, baby…_

Laughing at watching everyone else dance, Rachel grabs Wesley and pulls him closer to her making him dance with him. He smiles and starts dipping his shoulders and snapping his fingers along with the beat.

_(Mercedes and Mike)…I like the way you work it…no diggity…I gotta bag it up, baby_

Mike moon walks his way over to Mercedes, causing her to crack up laughing. He dances in circles around her moving his feet in ways only a professional dancer can. Mercedes sings along with him while swaying from side to side along with the song.

_(Tina and Quinn)…I like the way you work it…no diggity…I gotta bag it up, baby…_

Quinn sits on the bed leaning up against the headboard as she claps her hands and sings. Tina who is sitting side ways with her legs hanging off the bed, sings along with her as the unexpected pair sway taking the next line of the song.

_(Brittany and Santana)…I like the way you work it…no diggity…I gotta bag it up…_

After making her way back to her girlfriend Brittany places her hand on Santana’s waist. Pulling the shorter woman closer and turning her around so her back side is pressed into her front they both bop back and forth to the music leaning into each other.

_(Artie and Mercedes)…I like the way you work it…no diggity…I gotta bag it up, baby…_

Mercedes leans down to Artie as they sing together. Mercedes then looks over to Madison who is wiggling and dancing while sitting on Arite’s lap. The diva nudges the girl encouraging her to sing the last line with her boyfriend.

_(Artie and Madison)…I like the way you work it…no diggity…I gotta bag it up, we out!_

Everyone is shocked when they hear Madison’s voice singing along with Artie. As the song ends everyone looks around the room at each other before busting out laughing so hard their stomach clench tight and tears are brought to their eyes. As they try to steady their breathing they all go around the room high fiving each other and reminiscing on how much they missed singing together.

Kurt rushes with arms open to close the small distance between him and his father and hugs the older man tightly. “I’m so glad to see you!” he exclaims.

Burt hugs his son back and quickly gives him a sweet kiss on the forehead as he softly tells him, “I’m glad to see you too kiddo.”

“I thought you wouldn’t come! When did you get here? Did you have breakfast?” Kurt asks immediately as his dad just smiles with a huge grin on his face knowing it’s best to let his son finish.

“I got in this morning kid, and don’t worry about this old man. I had breakfast with Blaine. He woke up early to open the door for me and then we ate something…he’s pretty skilled at cooking…” Burt teases his future son-in-law looking friendly over at Blaine.

Kurt looks back to the shorter man, who’s standing by their bedroom’s curtain door and gives him a sweet smile. Blaine smiles back before looking at his watch and realizing the time  and knowing he has to be somewhere else. Looking down at himself and seeing that he is still in his pj’s, he looks back to Kurt and tells him, “I’ll go change okay? I’ll be back soon…”

Kurt nods still wearing that happy smile that hasn’t left since seeing his father sitting in his living room. Blaine disappears behind the sheet curtains leaving the blue-eyed man alone with his father. Burt takes a seat in one of the couches and Kurt quickly joins him sitting cross-legged in front of his dad.

“Where’s Carole? Why didn’t she come? I miss her too!” Kurt rambles with excitement.

“She wasn’t feeling well kid. The doctor said she needed some rest so she stayed home, but she sends you a hug and she’s going to call you later.” Burt sits on the couch with his elbows on his knees and his fingers laced together while looking proudly at his son.

When Kurt is about to reply, Blaine emerges from the room all dressed up in tight red pants, a black polo, and his usual matching bowtie. Causing Kurt to forget what he was about to say. The blue-eyed man’s jaw drops slightly as he takes a second to admire his fiance’s attire. Time seems to stop as he looks his fiance over from head to toe admiring the way the fabric of his pants hugged his legs in all the right places. The way his shirt allows his muscles to pop out more defined than he’s ever noticed before. His mind starts to drift off to thoughts he probably shouldn’t be having with his father sitting so close to him, but he couldn’t tear his eyes away.

Burt, noticing the game of looks going on between the two lovers, clears his throat loudly making Kurt to blush as red as the apples sitting upon the kitchen table. Blaine a bit blushed too, starts to stutter, “Ummm…I-I-I have to go buy some stuff for-for later, I’ll go and give you guys some time alone, okay? I’ll be back soon…”

Kurt just nods speechless over his finance’s beauty and Blaine, not wanting to make the situation even more awkward, just walks by and quickly gives his fiance a quick peck on the lips and Burt a friendly hand shake.

“Don’t take long!” Kurt yells.

“I won’t” Blaine yells back as he walks away through the small apartment waving at the two men sitting on the couch.

As soon as the hazel-eyed man closes the door, Kurt turns around and murmurs, “Sorry about that…We didn’t mean to make you feel uncomfortable–” He trails off.

“You didn’t…Ummm…Where’s the remote?” The older man asks clearly not wanting to keep talking about that subject.

Kurt laughs and giving his father the remote he asks, “How long are you staying? Because I was thinking if you stay for a couple of days we can actually go to a lot of places. Last year’s Christmas tour was good, but you still need to visit a lot of places, Dad! There’s this awesome restaurant next to the Yankees Stadium that you’re going to love, or we could go and visit–”

Kurt lists off a bunch of places when Burt mutes the T.V and facing his son he adds, “Easy kid…I can’t stay all day. Unfortunately when I told you I was busy today I wasn’t lying. I have a very important meeting in D.C. at four pm, so I’ll probably have to go soon. But I wanted to be here when you wake up. I wouldn’t have missed the chance to be with you in your one and only 21st birthday.”

Kurt smiles warmly at his father and adds, “Thank you dad! I love having you here…And don’t worry I understand. We can take that tour another time, maybe this summer and Carole can come too and we can even take the ferry and go to Coney Island! I know she wanted to go, she told Blaine…”

“Yeah, she mentioned something and that sounds perfect son…I’ll talk to her and we’ll try to be here for summer and you guys can take us to that so called tour you’ve been talking about…”

Kurt smiles and Burt, suddenly remembering he has a gift for his son, says, “Oh! I almost forgot!” he exclaims taking out a white envelope from his cotton khaki vest. “This is for you…Happy birthday kiddo!”

Kurt grabs the envelope and unable to hide the sarcasm in his voice, he jokes, “Another gift? I thought that the super special postcard of the congress you sent was my gift.”

Burt chuckles and turning off the T.V., he scolds his son, “Don’t use that tone with me, okay? I know you were disappointed for like ten minutes, but the postcard was Anderson’s idea. Blame it on him, I just followed his plan…” The older man says while raising his hands claiming innocence.

Kurt laughs because he can clearly picture his fiance asking his dad to send just a plain old postcard to deceive him, so with a playful smile he teases “I’ll make him pay for that later…” While opening the envelope and taking out what looks like a check.

“It’s not much, but I’m sure is going to help. Maybe you can buy some new clothes, or you can invest it, or I don’t know; buy something for the place…Which by the way looks awesome!” Burt compliments, looking around the room and seeing the changes the two boys have made since everyone else moved out.

“Thank you, dad, now that it’s just the two of us I can finally take care of the decoration. And I appreciate the money…Though you didn’t have to get me anything. Having you here is the best present ever…” Kurt says with a sweet smile on his face.

Burt, smiling back, gets a tad teary eyed when saying, “Your mother would be very proud of you…”

“Dad…” Kurt mutters, trying to stop his dad to continue with the whole _‘Your mother would be so proud’_ talk.

Burt, ignoring Kurt’s pleading eyes continues, “It’s the truth son. We are both so proud of you Kurt, but she would be especially happy and proud to see the man you’ve become.. You have fulfilled all of the hopes and expectations a father and a mother could have for a son, and I’d say even more. You went from being this shy and insecure guy, to the confident man I have in front of me right now. I’m sure that if she was with us, she would be thrilled to be here spending some time with you at your own apartment…And probably she would have conspired with your fiance to make a huge party to celebrate it…”

Kurt laughs, thinking about his mom, because that probably would have happened if she was still here. That thought immediately send tears to Kurt’s eyes, who tries hard to fight them back as Burt continues, “…And we both would have had to smile and pretend to be happy about the party, to finally end up enjoying it, because that’s who we are. We hate surprises, but we secretly love them…”

The tears pool in his eyes making it hard for Kurt to do anything but nod and Burt exhaling continues, “…And I know that wherever she is now, she’s smiling and celebrating this important day with you.”

Kurt, unable to keep the tears from falling, sobs loudly as some tears roll down his cheeks. He hates to cry in front of his dad, but sometimes he can’t help it.

Burt, noticing his son’s now covered in tears face, tries to make him see the positive, “Don’t cry Kurt. It’s your birthday! You’re turning 21 and becoming a man! You should be smiling not crying! This is a day to celebrate!”

“I can’t help it…” Kurt replies between sobs and hugging his father he chokes out, “I love you dad!”

“I love you too bud. Now…stop crying. I can’t stay all day, but I still have one hour before I have to go to the airport, so fill me in with all the details I’m sure you’ve been planning for the big day!”

Kurt smiles excited and quickly wiping his tears, he stands up and walks to the room to grab his _‘Wedding planning’_ box. When Burt looks at the size of the box he mutters, “Well that’s a big box…”

Kurt nods and places it on the coffee table, “And this is just this month’s box dad…You should have seen last month’s, but anyways are you ready?” The blue-eyed man asks excitedly while slowly opening his huge scrapbook.

Burt nods and can’t help but laugh a little. He doesn’t know how they are going to look at all that information in less than an hour, but trying to humor his son, he enthusiastically tells his son, “Ready…Let’s do this!”

“Perfect!” Kurt exclaims clapping his hands excited, “…Because I need your opinion about the venues…I have some ideas so far, but I want to create this _luxueux et élégant_ (luxurious and elegant) style with a hint of _folie et fantasie_ (madness and fantasy) that gives the sensation of being in a dream…I know it probably sounds presumptuous, but I really want this to be _extraordinaire_ (extraordinary)”

Burt looks at his son completely confused. He understood just half the things the blue-eyed man said, but trying to be supportive he replies, “Well…I don’t speak French, I barely speak English so I don’t know what you said…But I’ll try to help”

Kurt smiles at his dad and whispers a soft, “Thank you” as the two men start to catch up with all the wedding details.

The group of friends sit around the hotel room Blaine had booked for them to stay in until going over to the loft for Kurt’s surprise party. Trying to kill time the ten of them talk about things they have missed out on in each others lives.

“Oh, yeah, Santana, congratulations by the way. Now I can finally say that in person instead of over a really delayed Skype call.” Quinn laughs.

“Wait, Congratulations on what?” Artie questions, clearly he had missed something.

Brittany looks towards Santana and grabs her hand, linking their arms at the elbow. “Just that my amazing girlfriend landed a lead role in a new T.V. show.” she says with sparkling blue eyes.

“Oh my gosh Santana! That’s amazing, congrats!” Artie yells out followed by a couple congratulations from Mercedes and Mike.

Santana rolls her eyes and with a smirk she says, “Please, I don’t know why this is a surprise to any of you. We all knew I’d be famous one day.” Brittany smiles proudly at her girlfriend as Rachel and Quinn roll their eyes and chuckles come from everyone else.

“So…Madison how did you and Artie meet?” Rachel asks, trying to change the subject from Santana’s new role. She doesn’t want the rest of the group to know she was jealous when she first heard about it.

“Oh, I tried out for his student film and then we met again on Valentine’s day. He was hanging out with my brother Damian and some of his friends at this pub. We really hit it off and I was really inspired by his passion for the arts. He asked me out and how can you say no to a cute face like that?” Madison laughs. “No, but, seriously. Artie is the nicest guy I have meet in a really long time, and I know we haven’t been dating that long, but I’m really grateful I met him.”

“Aw, that’s cute. So, where are you from originally?” Mercedes asks.

“I’m from Wembley, London. I moved here a little under a year ago to try to make it as an actress and NYADA is where I was told to start.”

“And you got the lead role in Artie’s film?” Tina asks.

“Yep.” she smiles excitedly, “It’s going to be great. He’s such a genius and has such a great eye.”

“Yeah, how is your filming coming? Have you started shooting?” Rachel asks.

“Yeah, we just started filming the first scene on Wednesday actually. We have a long way to go, but I’m excited about it.” Artie answers.

In that moment the door of the room swings open revealing a very excited Blaine who yells, “Hi, everybody!” waving as he makes his way into the room.

The group of friends quickly wave back and Blaine looking around the room says, “I’m so glad you all could make it!” he says counting his friends. There are only ten people there, when he was expecting to count 12. “Ummm, does anyone know where Elliott and Dani are? They both should be here already…”

Santana freezes from playing with a stray string on Brittany’s blouse, as the two women sit on the edge of the full size bed to the left of the room. She looks up quickly to see Brittany’s reaction and then back to Blaine. “Wait, what?” she asks, clearly not paying attention to anything the man was saying before. She didn’t know they had invited Dani, let alone if she was coming. It wasn’t that she was afraid for her and Brittany to meet. She knows that’s going to happen someday, but it was more of the fact how they left things. She didn’t exactly break up with her in the nicest ways. The “ _Hey guess what? Remember that beautiful blonde I was in love with when I met you? Yeah, turns out I’m still completely head over heels for her and while I was in Ohio we got back together. Sorry.”_ Was kind of insensitive and heartbreaking. Yes, Santana loves Brittany with all her heart, but she never wanted to intentionally hurt Dani either.

Rachel looks at Santana and Brittany noticing how they both tensed at the mention of Santana’s ex attempt of a girlfriend. Looking up to Wesley, who seems to have noticed the same thing, she mouths ‘ _Santana’s ex’_ as an explanation. His eyes widen in understanding as he slightly nods his head. She looks to Quinn and then around the rest of the room to see if anyone knows the answer to Blaine’s question.

Tina looks over to the short haired blonde with a questioning look. Quinn just shrugs and whispers an “I don’t know” to her now close friend.

Before the atmosphere can get any more awkward the door of the room swings open again and Elliott, completely out of breath, stops in the doorway hunched over with his hands on his knees. “I’m so sorry I’m late! I was on my way here when I remembered I had left the coffee machine on, so I had to go back home and then since it was late I grabbed a cab and it broke down! So, I ended up running the rest of the way” He says, taking a deep breath to try to fill his lungs with precious air as he continues, “But I’m here now…”

Blaine smiles and pulls Elliott into a hug to show him it wasn’t a big deal. With his arms wrapped around the other man’s shoulders he suddenly remembers Kurt’s dream, worried that the hug might be lasting too long and become awkward for both of them, he quickly takes a step back and asks about Dani. “Where’s Dani?”

“Oh! She sends her apologies…Ummm…She’s not coming.” The taller man runs his hand through his hair.

“Why?” Blaine inquiries.

Elliott drops his hand and shrugs. “I don’t know for sure, she just said something came up and she won’t be able to make it.”

Blaine pouts a little while Brittany murmurs, “Good, because frankly I don’t think I really like her…”

Santana immediately wraps her arm around Brittany and runs her hand up and down the small of the blonde’s back and says, “You have nothing to worry about Britt, even if she was here…I love you and only you” she comfort the love of her life while sweetly kissing Brittany’s temple.

The group of friends turn around and together they exclaim, “Awwww.” Causing Brittany to blush and Santana to send daggers with her eyes over her shoulder.

Blaine, noticing that his friends are distracted and not asking the questions he was expecting them to ask, says. “Okay, okay guys! Listen up! This is the plan.” He shouts while clapping his hands, “I’ll take Kurt for lunch, so you have exactly 60 minutes to get into the loft and set everything ready, okay? Just 60 minutes! I won’t be able to stall him longer than that without him suspecting something. You guys still have the keys so I’ll text you as soon as we’re on our way. Is everything clear?”

“Yes it’s clear! Don’t worry, okay? We’re not incompetent. We’re very capable of handling that, Hobbit number two!” The Latina rolls her eyes, still leaning into Brittany’s side.

“Hey!” Rachel and Blaine both yell out at the same time because of the _hobbit_ nickname she uses with both of them.

“You know Santana, sometimes your nicknames for us get old quickly.” Rachel states with a glare.

“Oh, I’m sorry Yentl, I’ll try to come up with new ones for you and gay Clark Kent.” Santana smirks and rolls her eyes.

Mike, sitting in a chair in the corner quietly takes the two seconds of silence and pipes in. “Ummm Blaine? Where’s Kurt?”

“At home…Burt is with him. In fact–” Blaine says looking at his watch “I should probably go. I lied and said I was going to buy some stuff. I still need to make a stop somewhere, so Kurt doesn’t suspect anything. Anyways see you guys later and thank you…for everything” he says while opening the room’s door. “And Santana…please don’t go rummaging through our drawers, okay?” he tells her in all seriousness before closing the door behind him.

“Did he really have to say that? I don’t rummage–” Santana is claiming in self defense when Rachel interrupts.

“Don’t you even dare finish that sentence!” causing the whole group to burst into laugh.

Santana crosses her arms, “Whatever I’d be afraid of what I’d find in there anyways.” She says letting out a huff.

Blaine opens the door of the loft expecting to find Kurt lost in conversation with his father and Burt probably watching some game, but instead he finds Kurt sitting by himself at the kitchen table with the wedding planning box and a photo album. Blaine steps in and asks, “Where’s your dad?”

The distracted birthday boy looks up from the photo album replies, “Ummm…he had to go, but he said for us to have fun together. He left you a note though…” He hands Blaine a small folded piece of paper.

Blaine opens it and reads to himself. _“Blaine, I had to go, but thanks for everything. I’ll see you next time. Take care of each other, and by the way…He already knows that the postcard was your idea. Sorry. Burt.”_

Blaine laughs out loud as soon as he finishes reading the card and facing his fiance he asks, “So…How much trouble did I get myself into thanks to that postcard?”

Kurt laughs and grabbing the piece of paper from Blaine’s hand he asks, “Did he warn you? I can’t believe it! I was planning to make you pay very, very slowly!”

He was caught red handed so he laughs and hugs his fiance from behind while sweetly leaving kisses around his neck. “Ummm…Slowly? That’s a bit rude, so I guess I’m really in a lot of trouble, huh?” Kurt sticks his nose up in a way to pretending to be upset while trying to suppress the smile that’s threatening to burst from his lips.

“I guess I’ll have to make it up to you somehow…” Blaine flirts carefully placing a sweet kiss on the other’s man lips.

Kurt nods again still not speaking and rolling his eyes playfully, he teases, “It’s going to cost you a lot…First the new Marc Jacobs’ summer collection light jacket and–”

“The one who’s already there hanging in our closet?” Blaine asks back with a playful smile on his face.

Kurt freezes and turns around to see Blaine. “What did you say?” he asks, “Are you serious?”

Blaine shrugs. “Why don’t you go and find out?”

Kurt stands up excited and runs to the room opening the closet just to find a brand new Marc Jacobs summer collection, baby blue, light jacket, with a huge red ribbon and a small card that says “gift #2”. Kurt smiles and taking out the jacket he proceeds to try it on. It fits perfectly, _‘of course it does’._ He thinks to himself. Blaine knows him so well to not buy the right size.

“So…Does it fit?” Blaine asks yelling from somewhere near the kitchen.

Kurt smiles and emerges from the room spinning a 360º to show his fiance that in fact the jacket fits perfectly. “What do you think?”

“It looks amazing!” Blaine smiles sweetly at the boy he has in front of him. The jacket looks amazing. He can’t deny that, but the smile on his face looks even better.

“I know right!? Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I can’t wait to see Chuck’s face when he sees this!” Kurt shouts spinning one more time.

“Am I starting to make it up to you?” Blaine asks giving the birthday boy his very special _‘please forgive me’_ eyes.

Kurt rolls his eyes. “Yes, you are, but the list is long so you better be ready.”

“I’m ready…” Blaine says looking down to the stuff covering the kitchen table. “What were you doing before?”

“Just torturing myself. The talk with my dad brought back so many memories and I wanted to see some pictures…” Kurt says reaching the table and looking down at the old picture Blaine is now looking at. It’s a group picture of all their friends at McKinley after winning nationals. They all look so happy and young and united.

“…I thought some of them would be calling me today, but so far no one…” Kurt trails off unable to hide the hint of sadness from his voice. “…They could have just sent a quick text to wish me a happy birthday, but none of them has done it. It’s like if I don’t even exist! They all move away and get new lives and suddenly they forget about us.”

Blaine notices that Kurt is really sad about the lack of interest from their friends so leaning over to grab his hand, he reassures his sad fiance, “Don’t worry! I’m sure they’ll call. Maybe they’re just busy, but they do know you exist” Blaine tries his best not to reveal the surprise afterwards.

Kurt looks at his fiance and shakes his head. “Well, nobody has called me yet, not even Mercedes or Rachel…and Brittany! Geez! I mean Santana I would expect this from, but not everyone else. Like not even Elliott! He could have come by just to say happy birthday! He lives nearby, but he didn’t! Nobody remembered my birthday!”

The secret keeper bites his lip trying to suppress his smile and while caressing his fiance’s cheek he exclaims, “Well I did, so come on Birthday Boy! Go and change in your best clothes! It’s almost lunch time and we have some reservations! We’re going to this place you like so much!”

Kurt smiles and his eyes immediately light up. “Gramercy’s?” he questions.

Blaine sends him a big smile and Kurt starts to clap excited while quickly kissing his fiance and running to the room to get ready. After like two minutes Kurt yells from the room. “By the way…That restaurant was on the list too”

Blaine laughs softly and whispers more to himself, “I know…”

Through the sheet curtain door Kurt hollers, “I heard that smarty pants!”

Blaine smiles again and repeats, “I know” making Kurt to roll his eyes and close the sheet curtain again.

After receiving a text from Blaine letting them know the loft was empty and that it was safe for the eleven of them to sneak in to start setting up for Kurt’s surprise, Rachel grabs the silver key that lies under their welcome mat and unlocks the big metal door. Sliding the door open she walks in with Wesley next to her. Quinn trails in behind the new couple along with Tina, as Brittany and Santana follow behind them.

Rachel stands in the middle of the room as the rest of the group slowly files in. “Okay, did we grab everything out of the trunk of the car?” she asks turning around.

Mike and Elliott walk in too, each carrying a cardboard box. Artie, being pushed by Madison are the last ones in. Artie has three boxes stacked on his lap that hide his face. Making their way over to the dining room table, they place the boxes of decorations on top.

“Yep, this is everything he had in there.” Mike answers, wiping the metaphorical dust off his hands.

Santana walks over and looks in the boxes. “Seriously? A feather boa, streamers, party hats? What are we? Twelve? What does he expect us to do with this stuff?”

Mercedes speaks up, “It’s the thought that counts, Santana. Now, come on we can make this work guys. We’re creative enough.” she starts pulling out decorations and handing them to everyone. “Now, let’s get started. We don’t have much time!”

The group starts to split ways as they go around the loft decorating. They hang streamers from wall to wall and place _‘Happy 21st Birthday’_ banners from the ceiling. They place tablecloths over the tables and sprinkle glittery table confetti on it.

Santana stands off to the side looking around as her friends, and a stranger she’s never met before, runs around the small loft. She squints her eyes and tilts her head with her arms crossed against her chest. Looking up with a thought, she quickly turns around and walks off to a closet to the right of the room. Rummaging through the closet, she starts to throw random things out as she searches for something in particular.

Hearing the loud noises coming from the other side of the room, Rachel looks over. “Santana! Blaine said not to go through their stuff this time!”

“Can it Berry, I’m just looking for these.” She pulls out a string of white and blue Christmas lights.

Quinn looks over when she hears the conversation and asks “How did you know where they had those?”

Brittany jumps in and leans into Quinn whispering “Don’t question it, just roll with it.” Santana overhears her girlfriend and winks at her with a smile.

Quinn looks over to Mercedes who just shrugs her shoulders and says, “Girl, I stopped trying to understand her a long time ago.” The two women laugh as they walk over to Santana and grab some of the lights from her. With some help from Mike, Elliott, and Wesley, they start to hang up the lights around the upper part of the walls.

Rachel goes back to setting out the party hats on the dining room table when she sees Santana slipping behind Kurt and Blaine’s bedroom curtain. She rolls her eyes at the Latina’s antics.

When Santana returns to the living room she has a technicolor light up disco ball in her left hand.

Mercedes jumps in, “Okay, now even I am super curious…how you knew they had that?”

“Because Wheezy, they are gay, of course they have a disco ball.” Santana responds with a straight face. Handing the disco ball to Mike, she sits down on the couch taking out her phone. Letting out a huff she looks up from the device and see’s everyone running around the small room. “Can you all please hurry up!? I need to text Pee-Wee Herman back so he stops spamming me with his 40, 30, 20 minutes left texts!”

“Okay, okay.” Rachel says standing up on a chair to hand the last decoration. “I…Believe it’s …Done!” she says once it’s in place.

The group stands and takes a step back, standing by the loft door to look at their finished product. “Okay no, this isn’t going to work! There’s not enough glitter and isn’t nearly gay enough for lady-lips.” Santana exclaims.

Brittany tilts her head and says softly, “Well, we had more, but I got hungry. I thought it would make me more magical, like Ke$ha.”

“I think it looks good guys.” Madison says sweetly.

“Yeah, we all did great!” Artie pipes in backing up his girlfriend.

“Yeah, I agree.” Rachel looks around the place as the lights sparkle and dance across the ceiling and floor. “These lights are all hooked to one switch right? So when Blaine walks in and flips the switch they’ll turn on instead of the lamp.”

“Yes, Pinocchio” Santana sighs and looks around the room. With her lips pressed in a tight line trying to hide her being too sincere self, she says, “And yeah, I guess It looks pretty dope.” she shrugs then looks back to her phone, “Oh, and we have like ten minutes to spare.” looking at Blaine’s last text message.

Tina looks around the room and sees their limited places to hide and says, “So everyone start thinking about where you’re going to hide.”

“Oh! I call dibs on the freezer. Kurt will never see me coming.” Brittany bounces on the heels of her feet with an excited smile.

Sending her girlfriend a smile Santana says, “Babe, don’t you think the freezer might be a bit too cold?” Of course ignoring the fact the blonde could never fit in the freezer, “You know what happens when you get really cold. Brittany immediately looks down to her chest and blushes.

“Right. Then maybe the oven?”

“Brittany why don’t you just hid in the closet? That’s where I was going to hid, but we can switch.” Wesley says trying to help the blonde.

“Oh, I would but San and I have a no hiding in the closet policy. I can always hide behind that plant.” She points to a small skinny bamboo plant Kurt had brought in when he redecorated the loft. The group share a look as they try to suppress a laugh not wanting to get a visit from Snix. Madison steps up and links arms with Brittany, “Here, come hide behind the couch with me.”

Santana’s phone chirps again and she looks down at the screen, “Okay, guys, hiding places now! They are almost here!” Everyone finds a quick hiding spot and crouches down low, waiting for the birthday boy.

Kurt and Blaine are walking hand in hand down the street quickly making their way to their home. Kurt, taking advantage of the red light that suddenly changes, leans over and quickly kisses Blaine’s cheek, completely taking him by surprise.

“Thank you!” Kurt exclaims.

“For what?” Blaine asks looking into beautiful and sparkling blue eyes.

“For everything…But especially for the surprise at the restaurant. I wasn’t expecting Isabelle, Jess, Jackie, Chuck, Chad, and all the rest of my friends to be there…It was nice…Thank you!”

Blaine smiles and says. “You’re welcome.” And resumes the walking as the light changes to green again.

They arrive to their building and Blaine thinking out loud whispers, “And…We’re here…”

Kurt frowns and as they make their way to the third floor he says, “You’re acting weird…”

Blaine, who was distracted thinking about the surprise he knew was waiting for Kurt inside their house, turns around and asks, “What?”

“You’re acting weird…Since we left the restaurant you practically made us run our way here…What’s going on?” Kurt asks.

“Ummm…Nothing! I-I just have to go to the bathroom. That’s all…Sorry I should have gone at the restaurant…”

Kurt laughs a little as they reach the door of their home. Blaine, knowing that he has to turn on the switch, takes out his keys and opens the door stepping off aside immediately. Kurt, oblivious to the surprise, walks in. In less than one second, Blaine turns the switch on and the place illuminates revealing sparkling lights dancing on the walls and balloons and streamers throughout the loft. As all their friends jump out from behind the couch, inside the closet, and behind doors and hanging curtains. They pull the tabs on their mini confetti cannons while screaming, “Surprise!” making Kurt’s eyes to open widely.

“Oh, my God!” Kurt whispers as he scans the room. All his friends are there, well almost all of them. Sam, Puck, and Dani are missing. Kurt smiles at them and it’s then when he notices that Santana is not standing behind the couch like the rest of his friends, instead, she’s sitting on the couch with her legs crossed.

Santana, noticing that Kurt is looking at her and says, “Please! I’ve lived with you, you really think I was going to crouch behind that couch in the dark when God knows what could crawl on me and wait for you to come home so I can yell surprise when we all know I’m the one getting scared when you walk through that door?”

Kurt laughs and with a big smile he tells the Latina, “Oh…I’ve missed you too Santana!”

Santana rolls her eyes playfully and smiles, quickly standing up and going over him to give him a big hug. “Happy Birthday! Now you can officially drink! Though I don’t see how that’s going to work for you. You’ve been drunk like two or three times and one of them was with a sip of April’s drink; and I don’t think we can count that as a legit getting drunk experience, we totally have to work on your alcohol tolerance…But, anyways…Happy Birthday, young Elton John.”

“I’m flattered Satan! You even gave me a new nickname!” Kurt exclaims, overly excited, making fun of his friend.

“That’s how much I like you.” Santana replies trying not to laugh.

Kurt laughs, “Thanks…Though I like Lady-Hummel better.”

“Don’t worry I’m flexible, Lady-Hummel!” Santana jokes making the whole group to burst into laugh.

After they stop laughing Mercedes yells, “Group hug!”

Brittany, Rachel, Wesley, Quinn, Tina, Mercedes, Artie, Madison, Elliott, and Mike walk from behind the couch to join Blaine and Santana, who are already hugging Kurt. The group of friends hug each other cheering the birthday boy until Rachel raising her hand yells, “Let’s party!”

Mike runs over to the iHome and immediately turns it on, making the music to resound through the walls of the small apartment.

Kurt is leaning against the kitchen counter just watching with a smile as his friends are having a blast. He can’t help but remember and long for the good old days, when having fun was their only goal. _‘Life passes in the blink of an eye’_ He thinks to himself as he slowly starts to scan the room spotting Brittany and Santana first.

“What a difference from the last time they were this drunk…” Kurt whispers trying to suppress his smile as he watches Brittany giving Santana a lap dance. The Latina is trying hard to fight back the tears as she looks at the woman she has in front of her and yells, “I love you Britt!” while taking a sip of her drink.

Kurt laughs and moves to watch the next couple, Artie and Madison. _‘Artison?’_ He thinks to himself and laughs at his own joke. Madison is sitting on Artie’s lap drinking from her cup, while her boyfriend is making the chair spin uncontrollably causing the blonde to laugh and raise her hands in the air enjoying the moment.

Still in his own world, Kurt rolls his eyes playfully because he knows that the spinning is just going to make them throw up at some point, but he shrugs and focuses his attention on the next couple, Rachel and Wesley. “What the–” He murmurs. Rachel and Wesley are both clinging in each other’s arms and murmuring to each other _‘You are amazing, no you are amazing!’_ Until one very drunk Mike Chang crashes into them while he was trying to make a robot move.

Kurt laughs loudly because his friends are so funny to watch when they’re drunk, but his laughter is killed by a screaming Quinn Fabray who is suddenly bitching about Yale and Puck being away somewhere overseas, _‘with mermaids and dolphins’._ While she’s in New York getting drunk and pretending not to miss him. Tina, her new partner in crime, is just looking at her and laughing while pretending to understand her.

“That friendship is so weird…” Kurt whispers as he shakes his head and slowly turns to the left side of the apartment where Mercedes is sitting on the floor. She has her cup firmly grabbed with her both hands and she’s laughing loudly as Elliott, who has been clinking his red cup with everyone, approaches her and almost spills his drink all over her when he tries to clink his cup against hers.

Kurt is laughing at that when a warm arm grabs him from the waist. “Are you having fun, baby?” Blaine whisper in his lovers ear as he leans over to kiss his fiance.

“I am…” Kurt says, truly honest.

“What were you doing all alone here at the kitchen?” Blaine asks, a little worried.

“I was just enjoying the view…All of them are so funny when they’re drunk. I couldn’t help but remember the last time I saw them like this…You remember Rachel’s party, don’t you?”

Blaine smiles at the thought. “We won’t play spin the bottle if that’s where you’re going with this…”

Kurt laughs and resting his head on his fiance’s shoulder he says, “No, I wasn’t thinking about that, but I’m glad to hear you don’t want to share some kisses with the rest of the class.” he sweetly tells him making Blaine to roll his eyes and laugh a little.

“Anyways, I was thinking how much things have changed since then…All our friends are relatively happy with people they love and…We’re together” he gushes while looking up to meet beautiful hazel eyes.

“Yes, we are.” Blaine replies, quickly kissing Kurt’s forehead.

“This is going to sound silly, and probably a bit cheesy, but that night, at Rachel’s party, I didn’t drink because I was trying to impress you…” Kurt confesses.

Blaine laughs sweetly, “Well it worked, though I think you impressed me the first time you talked to me…And now? Why aren’t you drinking? I know you don’t like to do drink that much, but what’s wrong with one shot or two?”

Kurt raises his head and kissing his fiance again he whispers, “Because, I want to remember.”

Blaine smiles and kisses him back, trying to deepen the kiss. In that moment, Rachel arrives next to the two men and clears her throat. Kurt opens his eyes and rolling her eyes at her he says, “Go away, Rachel”

Rachel laughs. “I’m sorry Kurt, but I can’t! I need my duet partner!” She exclaims already grabbing Blaine’s hand.

“You have Wesley! Leave my man alone!” Kurt complains

“This is tradition, Kurt!” Rachel says while pulling Blaine towards the small stage they had improvised.

Blaine looks back at Kurt with desperation as Rachel keeps pulling him. Kurt laughs, and before Rachel turns on the music he yells from the corner, “I want him in one piece Rachel…And no kissing!”

Rachel shoos him away with a wave and just laughs. The rest of the group raise their red cups as the song starts to resound through the walls of the small apartment.

_(Rachel)…It’s going down, I’m yelling timber. You better move, you better dance. Let’s make a night, you won’t remember. I’ll be the one, you won’t forget…wooooo, oooooh…wooooo, oooooh…_

Hearing Rachel singing the upbeat Ke$ha song, Brittany jumps up on top of the coffee table and starts dancing, popping, and locking to the beat of the song. Spotting the blonde as she moves her body expertly, Wesley jumps up next to her trying to mimic her moves. Santana stands up quickly and starts to yell a few words in Spanish, but is quickly interrupted by Elliott, who grabs her hand and spins her around, causing her to laugh and stop the rant. He smiles at her and Santana, rolling her eyes, gives in and dances with him.

_(Blaine)…The bigger they are, the harder they fall. This biggity boy’s a diggity dog. I have them like Miley Cyrus, clothes off twerking with my bras and thongs, timber. Face down, booty up, timber. That’s the way we like the war, timber. I’m slicker than an oil spill. She say she won’t, but I bet she will, timber…._

Quinn and Tina hold their stomachs while laughing and crying. They are laughing so hard tears starts rolling down their cheeks. Wiping each other’s tears as they watch Blaine sing and dance around Rachel, the two new best friends clink their cups in the air.

Mike shimmies his way between Quinn and Tina and wraps one arm around them both. Quinn laughs again and leans in to him as Tina playfully pushes him away.

_(Blaine)…Swing your partner round and round. End of the night, it’s going down. One more shot, another round. End of the night, it’s going down. Swing your partner round and round. End of the night, it’s going down. One more shot, another round. End of the night, it’s going down…_

Madison and Mercedes stand off to the side of the room with their drinks in their hand. Madison whispers something to Mercedes making her laugh out loud. Looking at the two woman confused as to what they are laughing about, Artie just smiles and turns the wheels of his chair to go grab another drink. As he turns he bumps into Santana and Elliott causing Santana to stump and fall into his lap. They both look at each other before slinging their head back as they laugh uncontrollably.

_(Rachel)…It’s going down, I’m yelling timber. You better move, you better dance. Let’s make a night, you won’t remember. I’ll be the one, you won’t forget. It’s going down (It’s going down), I’m yelling timber, You better move (You better move), you better dance (You better dance). Let’s make a night, you won’t remember. I’ll be the one…You won’t forget (You won’t forget)…ooooh…_

Brittany and Wesley jump off the coffee table and dance their way around the room grabbing their friends hands, pulling them into the center of the room, and making them dance. The group of friends laugh while swaying their hips and dipping their shoulder while watching Rachel and Blaine adamantly sing.

_(Blaine)…Look up in the sky, it’s a bird, it’s a plane. Nah, it’s just me, ain’t a damn thing changed. Live in hotels, swing on plane. Blessed to say, money ain’t a thing. Club jumping like Lebron, now, Voli. Order me another round, homie. We about to climb, wild, ’cause it’s about to go down…_

Mercedes notices that Kurt is still leaning by the post where he was when Rachel stole Blaine from him, and goes quickly to make him join the celebration. Kurt smiles and grabs her hand as they both join the dance.

_(Blaine)…Swing your partner round and round. End of the night, it’s going down. One more shot, another round. End of the night, it’s going down. Swing your partner round and round. End of the night, it’s going down…(Rachel)…Ooooh…(Blaine)…One more shot, another round. End of the night, it’s going down_

Blaine notices that his fiance has joined the dance group and as he keeps singing, he dances his way towards Kurt and starts to dance with him. Rachel abruptly pulls him away and drags him to climb next to her on the small coffee table. Blaine and Rachel keep performing while the rest of the group dances around them.

_(Rachel)…It’s going down, I’m yelling timber. You better move, you better dance. Let’s make a night, you won’t remember. I’ll be the one, you won’t forget (you won’t forget). It’s going down (It’s going down). I’m yelling timber. You better move, you better dance (You better dance). Let’s make a night (Let’s make a night), you won’t remember. I’ll be the one (I’ll be the one)…You won’t forget (You won’t forget)…_

Blaine and Rachel climb down the table and Kurt immediately grabs his fiance’s hand and passes an arm around his waist preventing Rachel to steal him again. Rachel ignores Kurt possessiveness attack as she keeps singing.

_(All)…ooooh, ooooh, oooohooooh…ooooh, ooooh, oooohooooh…ooooh, ooooh, oooohooooh…ooooh, ooooh, oooohooooh…_

The group makes their way to the center of the room and form a huge circle, all linking arms with the person on either side of them. Looking around the circle they all share a smile as they jump up and down to the music singing the adlibs of the song.

_(All)…ooooh, oooohooooh, ooooh…Timber…ooooh, oooohooooh_

The song comes to an end and the group gets quiet for a second while looking around at each other. Out of nowhere they start laughing and fall to the floor.

As the group of friends lay there, Elliott sits up and yells “Shots! Shots! Shots! Shots! Shots!” Grabbing a bottle of tequila off the dining table behind him. Taking a long sip he passes it to Mercedes, who sits next to him. She takes a quick sip, making a disgusted face afterwards and then passes it to Madison, who follows in suite before passing it to Artie. The bottle continues its way through, Rachel, Wesley, Tina, Quinn, Mike, Brittany, Blaine, and Santana.

After Santana knocks back a quick shot she looks over to the birthday boy who is watching them all in amusement. Reaching her left hand out to him, she waves the bottle of alcohol in front of him. “Come on Kurt, just one sip! It won’t make you pass out and forget the whole night.” Kurt gives her a curious look wondering how she knew that was why he didn’t want to drink. “You only turn 21 once!” she exclaims. After all in her family tequila was used to fix everything from a cold to unclogging drains.

He looks the Latina over for a moment before smiling and snatching the bottle from her hand, he exclaims, “Here’s to me!” He raises the bottle up in the air before bring it down quickly and taking his first legal shot of alcohol.

Kurt stands in the kitchen counter pouring some coffee into his favorite set of mugs. It’s pretty late and after hours of drinking all his friends are starting to pay the consequences. He grabs the eight mugs and manages to take them to the table in a single trip.

“That’s impressive” Tina mutters as she watches Kurt walking with all the mugs in his hands.

“A year of practice at the diner…” He says as a matter of explanation.

Kurt reaches the table and places the mugs in front of all his friends as he takes a seat next to Mercedes. “And…How are you feeling?” He whispers to his friends.

“I’m already regretting it…” Rachel whispers as she takes a sip of the coffee and makes a disgusting face afterwards.

“That’s what you get for drinking like crazy.” Kurt whispers again.

“Can someone explain me why we’re whispering?” Quinn suddenly asks.

“Because we have some sleepy heads around there” Kurt turns around and points to the living room where Mike, Elliott, Wesley, Artie, and Blaine are all sleeping in random places.

The girls turn around to see the boys and Santana pipes up in a scolding tone towards the sleeping man, “Well, yeah but they’re completely passed out…It’s not like they are going to wake up any time soon…They’re even snoring!” she exclaims making the group to burst out laughing.

Kurt returns his attention to the table and taking a sip of his own coffee he asks, “Tell me, how have you all been? How’s the adult life treating you?”

“I can’t complain” Quinn answers after taking in a deep sip of the coffee. “Yale is cool, though sometimes it’s hard to keep up with all my classes, but I think I’m doing great. I have a very nice roomie, Sarah, she’s in some of my classes too and we sometimes help each other with stuff. She’s a great friend. And Puck and I are fine…I mean we have some long distance disagreements, but we’re okay. It’s hard to be the girlfriend of an army man, but I can’t help it. I love him too much to give up on him” she finishes, staring down at her hands..

“Awww, that’s so sweet Quinn” Kurt says, “I’m happy for you both, you two deserve your happy ending…”

Quinn smiles sweetly and Tina grabs her hand. Kurt notices that and unable to keep keep his question to himself, he asks, “Umm…Girls, don’t get me wrong, but how is it that you two are such great friends now? I mean you were friends, but not like this…”

“Well we started talking about the hardship of dating military men and it became regular thing where we were talking almost everyday.” Tina explains, “And sometimes we also help each other with some homework. I call Quinn or she calls me, and we spend hours upon hours just talking. I never thought the day would come that miss. Popular and I would be best friends, but I think we now really have something that connects us…It’s pretty cool. ”

“More like weird…” Santana mutters to herself.

Rachel, catching what Santana just said, speaks up, “Anyways, I think its great you girls have each other for support, It must be hard sometimes…” Rachel gives them a soft sincere look. Looking around the room her eyes land on Mercedes, “And what about you Mercedes, how things are going on with Sam?”

Mercedes exhales in defeat and lets out a “Ummm…Sam…”

The group of friends look at each other and Quinn asks, “That bad, huh?”

“It’s complicated…I told him I wanted us to be together again and he pretty much said he didn’t know if that was what he wanted anymore. So then we decided to start over as friends and he kissed me….And then he ran away. So, I have no idea what is going on with us.” Mercedes says.

“I’m sorry to hear that Cedes…” Brittany says in her soft tone.

“Thanks Britt, but enough about me and my sad story…I’m kind of trying not to think about it for right now…Rachel! Girl! Tell us all about Wesley!” Mercedes exclaims, trying to lighten the mood.

“Oh guys! He’s amazing! like in every sense! He’s just perfect! I feel like the luckiest girl in the world!” Rachel exclaims excited “For those of you who don’t know him, he’s my co-star and we kind of had this innocent flirting thing going on. Or at least I thought that’s what it was but then–”

“–Yeah, yeah…We get it Gollum you like this guy” Santana interrupts. “…But enough about you,” she says giving her silky black hair a toss over her soft brown shoulder. “I’m a star too you know? Share some of the spotlight!”

Rachel laughs and motions for Santana to have the floor to speak. The Latina clears her throat and all excited share her story. “I landed a lead role in a new television series called _Perks of Being a Girl._ So keep an eye out for it. We just started script readings, but I’m pretty excited about it.” she gushes, bragging a little over her stardom.

“That’s amazing, Santana! I will definitely watch it! Just don’t forget about me when you’re rich and famous.” Tina laughs, “and what about you, Brittany? What are your plans?” she asks.

Brittany claps excited. “Drum roll please…” Laughing, Mercedes pads out a drum roll on the wooden floors. With a huge smile on her face Brittany says, “I’m going to be opening up my own dance studio in L.A.”

“That’s the best idea ever, Britt, and do you have a name for the place already?” Tina asks

Brittany smiles a knowing. “Yeah, but I can’t tell. It’s a surprise…Not even San knows about it.” she adds laughing playfully as Santana just nods her head.

“And talking about surprises…It was a really great one to finally meet Artie’s girlfriend…” Quinn shifts topics looking at Madison who had spent the whole conversation just trying to understand what they were talking about.

“Yes, girl! Tell us your story! We want the complete thing” Mercedes adds encouraging Madison to open up to the group.

Madison smiles and taking a sip from her coffee she blushes slightly, “Well, you already know that I’m not from here…I’m from a town called Wembley, in London. I came here with my brother because we both wanted to have careers in the showbiz; and one day we talked about the possibility of moving and the next thing I knew, he had bought us some tickets and we just grabbed our bags and came here…” She says as a matter of explanation.

“And why New York? Why not L.A.?” Rachel asks.

“You know what they say…If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere…” Madison replies.

Rachel laughs and a song comes to her mind and unable to contain it, she starts to hum and sing using a spoon as a microphone.

_(Rachel)…Start spreading the news, I am leaving today. I want to be a part of it New York, New York…._

The group of friends laugh as they slowly join the song. Santana immediately steals Rachel’s spoon and takes the lead in the next verse, causing Rachel to frown.

_(Santana)…These vagabond shoes are longing to stray. Right through the very heart of it New York, New York…_

Madison, Mercedes, Brittany, Tina, and Quinn start to clap rhythmically as Santana passes the spoon to Kurt, who immediately sings the next line.

_(Kurt)…I want to wake up in a city that doesn’t sleep and find I’m king of the hill…Top of the heap…_

Brittany starts to snap her fingers counting the beat of the song as Kurt sings and then she takes the lead in the next verse. Nobody wants to miss the chance to sing that song at least once.

_(Brittany)…These little town blues are melting away. I’ll make a brand new start of it in old New York…_

Brittany handles the spoon to Madison, who with a shy smile, starts to sing. Startling everyone, because she has a really nice voice.

_(Madison)…If I can make it there, I’ll make it anywhere…It’s up to you New York, New York…_

They all laugh as Rachel keeps humming the song and the rest of them keep clapping to harmonize the impromptu acapella version of one of the most representative songs of Mr. Sinatra.

_(All)…New York, New York…_

Quinn grabs another spoon and clearing her throat she takes the lead in the next verse. It’s been a while since the last time she sang, so she is very happy to do it again…And with her friends.

_(Quinn)…I want to wake up in a city that never sleeps and find I’m a number one, top of the list. King of the hill…a number one…_

Quinn passes her spoon to Tina, who, while snapping her fingers, uses her harsh voice to sing the next verse.

_(Tina) These little town blues….Oh they’re melting away. I’m gonna make a brand new start of it in old New York…_

Mercedes grabs the spoon and before the song comes to an end she sings the next line.

_(Mercedes)…And…If I can make it there I’m gonna make it anywhere…_

Rachel stops humming and finishes what she started taking the lead in the final part of the song.

_(Rachel)…It’s up to you New York, New York, New York…_

When the song comes to an end everybody claps and Santana says, “And that my friends is how we do it in Lima!” causing the rest of the table to cheer and clap excited.

“That was fun…Maybe we should try to do that more often…But I believe everyone at this table already shared something except for the birthday boy!” Mercedes grins, turning to her friend to give him a chance to brag.

“There’s nothing new to share” Kurt replies, blushing a little.

“Of course there is, how have you two been? How’s the wedding planning going?” Mercedes inquires.

“We’re fine, getting used to just be the two of us, but has been really great. And with the wedding planning” Kurt says, “Ummm…Well…We’re doing great with that too” he stumbles sounding not so convinced.

“Wait! Are you having seconds thoughts?” Rachel asks and Santana immediately pipes in saying, “I told you one day you’ll get tired of the hideous bowties”

“Stop mocking his bowties Santana, they are not that bad…and I’m not having second thoughts…But…Ummm…But I think Blaine is…” Kurt murmurs.

“What!?” All the girls exclaim.

“Well, I don’t know for sure, but he hasn’t been interested in the details. He spends most of the evenings rehearsing for the school play, at the gym or doing who knows what…” Kurt confesses.

“I’m a bit lost…Are you two having problems?” Rachel asks.

“No, on the contrary. We’re great. He’s amazing, and just look what he did today…But I don’t know why I have this feeling that he’s hiding something…And since he seems to be not interested in the wedding I’ve been thinking that maybe he met someone and–” Kurt trails off

“Don’t finish that sentence Kurt!” Tina scolds, “You, better than anyone, know Blaine, and you know he would never, ever cheat on you again…”

“Yes, Kurt, I hate to admit this, but that _script mistake_ happens only once, seriously…” Santana tell him in a tone that could only be taken serious, compared to most of the things the dating says.

“Why don’t you confront him about the lack of interest Kurt?” Quinn suggests “Maybe he’s just afraid of the wedding. That’s kind of normal, but you need to tell him…Remember that communication is important in any relationship.”

“Yeah you’re right…I’ll try to talk to him about it…” Kurt says smiling slightly.

“I’m sure he’s just nervous…If I was about to get married…I’m sure I would be super nervous…” Brittany suggests in a soothing tone, trying to reassure her friend.

“Thanks girls. I bet you’re right…I’ll talk to him soon and fix this, but right now I think we need to try to catch some sleep. It’s late…”

The girls all agree and slowly stand up from the table. “I’m going to sleep next to Blaine on the couch so our bed is free if any of you want to crash there…” Kurt is saying when Quinn, Tina and Mercedes jump up and run to the room and invade the bed.

Santana rolls her eyes and says, “Britt and I claim that couch” she adds pointing to the new green couch.

Rachel and Madison look at each other and Rachel grins at the other newly non-single member of the group, “I think we’ll have to crash with our men too…” Madison smiles and they both walk away and lay down next to their respective boyfriends on the floor. Lifting their men’s arms to wrap them around their waists and snuggling their heads into their chest.

Kurt walks to the switch by the door and turns the whole lights off. Using his phone to light the path he reaches the couch in which Blaine is snoring loudly and sits in front of him. Blaine shifts a little and Kurt whispers, “Shhh, keep sleeping honey, just move a little so I can lay down here with you.”

Blaine still asleep moves a bit and Kurt cuddles in front of him. He looks at his fiance and just like every night he whispers, “I love you, Blaine”.

“I love you too.” Blaine murmurs back in his sleep causing Kurt to smile widely.

Santana, who was in the next couch with Brittany already asleep on her lap, murmurs, “Could you two please shut up? We’re trying to sleep here!”

Kurt laughs a little and just replies, “Sweet dreams,Santana.” As he slowly drifts away and falls asleep embracing the love of his life.

The loft is quiet except for the soft snores that come from the people sleeping there until a loud sound breaks the silence. Elliott, who was sleeping under the coffee table murmurs, “Ouch!”

“Who’s there?” Santana asks waking up with the sound.

“It’s me, Santana…I bumped my head against the table.” Elliott says while he rolls from under the table.

Santana stands up from the couch being careful not to wake Brittany, and walks to the kitchen. “What time is it?” She asks.

“Ummm…1:30pm…” Elliott murmurs

“What!?” Santana exclaims, “It’s late! Oh God! Our flight takes off at 4!” she panics a little, quickly scanning the room. Her friends seem to be completely asleep. “Time to wake up!” she yells, but nobody moves.

“They are not going to wake up Santana…” Elliott tells her point blank, taking a seat by the kitchen table

“You wanna bet?” She tries him with her infamous _snix_ face, raising her eyebrow in defiance. Elliott laughs and Santana turns around and opens one of the cabinets.

“What are you doing?” the NYU student asks

“Improvising” She replies as she takes out a pan and a wood spoon from one of the drawers.

“You’re not going to–” Elliott is saying when Santana starts to hit the pan with the spoon making a deafening sound and creating chaos around the loft.

Brittany snap her eyes open and noticing her girlfriend is the one causing the commotion she closes her eyes again. Kurt jumps alarmed and falls from the couch while Blaine tries to catch him. Wesley and Rachel stand up from the floor as they ask _‘What happened?’_ All alarmed. Madison throws a pillow over her head as Artie looks around completely confused. Mike falls from his chair as Tina, Mercedes, and Quinn emerge from the room walking very zombie-like.

“What’s wrong with you!?” Kurt snaps all grumpy from the floor while he stands up with Blaine’s help.

“We have a flight to catch Lance Bass…Don’t be such a lady!” Santana replies as she takes a seat next to Elliot.

“But did you really need to do that?” Rachel questions angrily, still a bit sleepy.

“I tried to be nice…Elliot is witness that I really tried…” Santana says in self defense.

“Like one time…” Elliott murmurs.

“Anyways…It’s late and we need to go pick our stuff and be at the airport by 3pm ‘cause our flight leaves at 4pm!” Santana exclaims to get the group motivated.

“Okay…Okay Santana…We get it…Let’s hurry.” Quinn rolls her eyes, she’s not surprised. She’s used to Santana’s antics..

Brittany walks the short distance over to where her girlfriend is standing in the middle of the room between the living room and the kitchen. “Well, I’m really hungry. Do we have time to eat something?” She questions.

“Um, yeah B. I think we can squeeze in some breakfast.” She sends the blonde a smile before rolling her eyes and quickly adding playfully, “Well, more like lunch I guess.”

Overhearing the two women’s conversation, Rachel walks into the kitchen with Wesley trailing behind her, “I’m starving too!…But I’m not cooking.”

“Good, Berry, no one wants to eat any of that rabbit food you make anyways. I’ve seen homeless people eat better meals.” Santana quirks with her arms crossed.

The kitchen starts to get crowded once the word gets around to all 13 of them that there is going to be food. As the group of people stand in the kitchen talking, Santana’s voice rips through the room, “Okay, seriously, no one is offering to cook? We are on a time limit. It’s not like we are making a four course meal.”

“I don’t mind cooking something for everyone.” Wesley raises his hand as he speaks offering up his services with a charming smile.

“Of course, Prince Charming. Be my guest.” Santana grumbles as she leans her head on Brittany’s shoulder and closers her eyes. “And can everyone just shut up! I have a huge headache.”

“Not our fault you can’t handle your liquor Santana.” Kurt pipes in as he shows Wesley around the kitchen.

After being shown where everything was and what his options where, Wesley gets busy on whipping up a quick lunch for the group of friends. Figuring pasta was the fastest and easiest thing to make for the amount of people he was preparing for, he grabs the box of farfalle noodles and sets them on the counter. He then turns and grabs the pan Kurt set out for him and fills it with water. Placing the pan on the stove and turning the correct burner on he patiently waits as it starts to boil. “While I wait on the water to boil does anyone want some mimosa’s? I think we have some leftover champagne and if I’m correct Kurt and…Blaine is it? they have organic juice in the fridge if they don’t mind us using it.”

“Oh, stop being so polite, McDreamy.” Santana says sarcastically. “Just grab the shit and make it.” She quips with her eyes still closed and Brittany running a hand down her forearm.

“Here, let me give you a hand.” Madison says, making her way to the fridge and grabbing the carton of orange juice.

Santana opens her eyes when she hears Madison in the kitchen with Wesley. “Seriously what is with them? They are way too charming, it’s gross.” She speaks to Brittany who tries to suppress a laugh.

“Jealous, Santana.” Blaine smiles to the Latina.

“Now, why would I be jealous of Ms. Bree Van de Camp and Mr. Ryan Gosling over here?”

“Maybe because they are actually nice unlike some people here who just complain?” Mercedes suggests laughing as she takes a champagne glass from Madison, who is making her way around the room.

Before Santana can respond Wesley calls everyone to grab a plate announcing the dish of farfalle with broccoli and alfredo sauce is done. Everyone lines up and grabs a plate from the stack that is set out for them at the end of the counter. One by one they fill up their plate and then proceed to sit down and quickly eat their food.

Looking down at the dish Mercedes lifts a sculpted eyebrow, “What is this organic noodles? And no cheese? I’m pretty sure the definition of pasta says there has to be cheese.”

Wesley shrugs, “I just worked with what I had. They didn’t have any cheese and I think the noodles are whole grain or something.”

“It’s healthy guys, Blaine wanted to start a new diet and being the supportive fiance I am, I agreed to do it with him. So, we don’t have those temptations in our house. If you’re really hungry you’ll eat it.” Kurt smiles around the room. “Britt, slow down I think you have time to eat it without missing you flight.”

Blushing, she swallows her mouthful of food. “Sorry I’m just so hungry.”

“Yeah, because you’re lucky.” Everyone looks at Santana with a questioning look so she continues, “She doesn’t get hangovers. She just wakes up extremely hungry.” A hint of jealousy detected in her voice as she swallows a few ibuprofen.

The group of friends all nod and murmur their own versions of jealousy to the person sitting next to them. Madison looks over to Brittany who is almost done with her plate of noodles. “I’m with you Britt. I don’t get hangovers either.”

“Oh, just one more thing to make you even more charming.” Santana smiles to her before muttering a quick _‘Sorry’,_ after she see’s the look she received from her girlfriend.

“It’s okay San.” Madison says shorting Santana’s name, causing the Latina to look up at her and smile knowing the Madison is catching on quickly to the way the brunette works.

Walking into the kitchen and rising off her plate before whipping her hands on a towel, Madison turns around and makes eye contact with Artie. She gives him a quick nod before sighing and saying, “Bloody hell! Um, Artie and I have to go.”

Blaine looks over his shoulder to Artie who had somehow managed to climb back into his wheelchair. “Why? What’s the hurry for you two to leave already?”

“Oh um, well…” The tips of Madison’s ears start to turn a bright red for the thoughts that were running through her head. She has never been good at lying. She looks over to Artie for help.

“Oh, um, uh, ‘cause we have, stuff, and things. Yeah, things with the, ummm. Film! yeah the film. Gotta work on that, sooo, um, yeah, gotta go guys! Sorry!” Artie quickly grabs the bag he brought with him and slings it over the back of his wheelchair and hastingly makes his way over to the door.  Madison stands stock still with her face still as red as a tomato. Artie looks over his shoulder to his girlfriend and asks, “You coming?”

“Wanky!” Santana chuckles.

If it was even possible Madison blushes even deeper at hearing Santana’s comment. Quickly waving to everyone before hiding her face behind her hand as she shuffles out the door behind her boyfriend.

“That was weird…” Tina murmurs

“Yep” Quinn agrees.

Elliott stands up and excuses himself, “I have to go too. It’s kind of late and I need to buy some stuff and finish some school things…So I’ll see you guys later…Nice to meet the rest of you.” He says as he heads to the door.

The rest of the group look at each other confused as they finish their food. When they are done and while Rachel and Quinn are helping to clean all the dishes Mercedes looks at her clock and realizes she has to go too, “Well this was a really great celebration guys. I hope you had had a great birthday Kurt, but we really have to go…”

“Could you stay for just one more day? I’m missing you guys already!” Kurt exclaims.

“I don’t think so, gay-lips, we have to be back for work and besides, I won’t pay for another night in a hotel I’m not even going to sleep in…” Santana tell her friend

Kurt nods because Santana has a point there. “Okay, fair enough, but we’ll help you pick up you stuff at the hotel…”

“Okay, then let’s go!” Santana says grabbing Brittany’s hand and standing up.

Rachel looks around and the overwhelming feeling to burst into a song invades her. She whispers something to her boyfriend and to Quinn and they both nod with a knowing smile. Mike turns around confused and Quinn shares with him Rachel’s idea. He smiles as Rachel starts to hum.

_(Rachel)…Hmm,mm…Woah-oh-oh-oh…(Wesley)…It’s always a good time… (Quinn)…Woah-oh-oh-oh…(Mike)…It’s always a good time…_

Santana immediately shakes her head and before the song can continue she says, “No no no, seriously, do we have to sing a song every time someone walks through the door?” Kurt and Blaine nod, smiling as the latter starts to sing.

_(Blaine)…Woke up on the right side of the bed. What’s up with this Prince song inside my head? Hands up if you’re down to get down tonight…(Rachel)…Hmm,mm…(Blaine)…Cuz it’s always a good time._

Blaine slides open the door of the loft and grabbing his fiance’s hand they step outside and start to climb down the stairs with their friends following right behind them. Mike and Brittany start to dance as the rest of the group starts to clap along with the beat of the song.

_(Kurt)…Slept in all my clothes like I didn’t care. Hopped into a cab, take me anywhere. I’m in if you’re down to get down tonight. Cuz it’s always a good time!!!!_

Kurt opens the front door of the building and a wave heat hits them. Stepping into the sun, the group of friends sing their way as they walk to the nearest subway station. Tina makes a funny spin raising her hands towards the sky and starts to sing.

_(Tina)…Goodmorning and goodnight. I wake up at twilight_

Kurt and Blaine stare at Tina while she keeps spinning apparently enjoying the warm weather. The Asian girl notices her friends staring at her and with a big smile she clings her arms around them, and the three friends join their voices to continue singing the song.

_(Kurt, Blaine and Tina)…It’s gonna be alright. We don’t even have to try…It’s always a good time_

Quinn, Mercedes, Mike, Rachel, Wesley, Brittany, and Santana join the singing group as they start to climb down the stairs of the subway station. People around the station keep looking at them giving them some funny looks as the group of friends sing together pouring their hearts in the song.

_(All) Woah-oh-oh-oh, Woah-oh-oh-oh. Woah-oh-oh-oh…It’s always a good time. Woah-oh-oh-oh, Woah-oh-oh-oh. We don’t even have to try, it’s always a good time._

They found some empty seats and while the subway starts to move forward Santana holding tightly from the bars, starts to sing with Brittany dancing around her.

_(Santana)…Freaked out, dropped my phone in the pool again. Checked out of my room hit the ATM…_

Brittany hugs Santana from behind as the two girls join in the song. Some of the passengers start to clap along and enjoy the impromptu show the former Glee members are giving on their way to the hotel.

_(Brittany and Santana)…Let’s hang out if you’re down to get down tonight. Cuz it’s always a good time…_

Wesley, noticing the reaction the passengers around them are having, stands up and starts to dance with Brittany and Santana as he sings the next line of the song.

_(Wesley)…Goodmorning and good night…_

Rachel, not wanting to miss the chance to show her talent to the people of New York again, stands up too and holding her boyfriend’s hand she starts to sing.

_(Rachel)…I wake up at twilight…_

When the subway stops, Wesley grabs Rachel’s hand and as they make their way out of the station they sing together. The rest of the group follows the two talented T.V. stars until they reach the Imperial’s hotel lobby.

_(Wesley and Rachel)…It’s gonna be alright we don’t even have to try…It’s always a good time…_

Brittany, Santana, Mike, Tina, Quinn, Mercedes, Rachel and Wesley take the elevators and go to their respective rooms. There’s not time to change clothes, so all the couples just grab their bags and close the doors of their rooms behind them as they keep singing. Meanwhile, Kurt and Blaine wait outside where two cabs are waiting to take their friends to the airport.

_(All)…Woah-oh-oh-oh, Woah-oh-oh-oh. Woah-oh-oh-oh…It’s always a good time. Woah-oh-oh-oh, Woah-oh-oh-oh. We don’t even have to try, it’s always a good time… Woah-oh-oh-oh, Woah-oh-oh-oh. Woah-oh-oh-oh…It’s always a good time. Woah-oh-oh-oh, Woah-oh-oh-oh. We don’t even have to try, it’s always a good time…_

Wesley, Rachel, Mike, and Mercedes are waiting for the elevators when the rest of the group joins. The elevator arrives and while they step inside Quinn starts to sing.

_(Quinn)…Doesn’t matter when. It’s always a good time then…_

Wesley presses the ground floor button; and as the elevator rides down Mercedes smiles at Quinn and holding her friend’s hand she starts to sing too.

_(Mercedes)…Doesn’t matter where. It’s always a good time there…_

When the doors of the elevator _ping_ open Mike steps outside first practically screaming the next line of the song as the rest of them just laugh because, after all, this time the Asian boy still can’t sing.

_(Mike)…Doesn’t matter when…_

They walk through the lobby carrying their bags and when they spot Kurt and Blaine standing by the door they all scream _‘…It’s always a good time then…’_ Causing the people waiting at the lobby to look around confused.

_(All)…It’s always a good time. Woah-oh-oh-oh, Woah-oh-oh-oh. Woah-oh-oh-oh…It’s always a good time. Woah-oh-oh-oh, Woah-oh-oh-oh. We don’t even have to try, it’s always a good time…_

The group of friends stand outside with their bags around them on the sidewalk where two cabs sit in front of them waiting by the curb. They look at each other as the sing the last lines of the song.

_(All)…Woah-oh-oh-oh, Woah-oh-oh-oh. Woah-oh-oh-oh…It’s always a good time. Woah-oh-oh-oh, Woah-oh-oh-oh. We don’t even have to try, it’s always a good time…_

When the song comes to an end Mercedes steps forward and hugs Kurt. “Thanks for inviting me. I had a great time, and Happy Birthday.” Patting him on the chest she steps back and quickly hugs Blaine, picking up her bag and walking to the trunk of the car. Before she slides into the back of the cab she sends an enthusiastic wave to the boys who return it with huge smiles plastered on their faces.

Mike is the next to say his goodbyes as the others place their bags in their respective cabs. “Let’s hope another year doesn’t pass before I see you guys again.” Mike says patting them on the shoulders. “How ‘bout this, I have a show coming up at the end of the year for Carly Rae Jepsen, maybe I can get you guys some tickets and we can catch up again?”

“Oh my gosh! Yes! We would love that!” Kurt claps excitedly. “But, yes, we really do miss having all of you around. Reminds me of the good old days at McKinley. We need to plan something to make sure we all stay in touch.”

“Yeah, we will figure something out don’t worry.” Mike smiles before giving them a short nod saying goodbye one last time and slipping into the same cab as Mercedes.

Tina walks up to the boys next with Quinn standing behind her. “We’re just going to catch the same cab with Mike and Mercedes; so, I guess this is goodbye for us too.”

“Yeah, I still have four days left before my classes start up again, so I’m going to go back to Tina’s for a couple days before heading back to Yale.” Quinn says.

Blaine looks to Tina, “I’m really happy for you two. And you know Tina you’re not to far from us, you should visit more. Kurt and I would love the company. Since everyone moved out we don’t get out with friends as much; and we miss the dinners at the karaoke bars.”

Laughing, Tina and Quinn pull both boys into a group hug. “We will definitely stay in touch and come visit more often.” Quinn speaks for both of them. “It may be a longer ride for me, but I miss you guys too so I will try to get here more…”

“Thanks guys, call or text us sometime too. Have a safe trip.” Kurt smiles back to the girls as they turn and wave to Rachel, Wesley, Santana, and Brittany before slipping into the cab with Mercedes and Mike. The remaining friends watch as the cab pulls away.

Santana, who’s leaned up against the cab, pats Brittany’s thigh before standing up straight, “Whelp, this was fun.” She then turns to Kurt. “Congrats, you’re another year older and still just as boring.” Brittany walks over to Blaine and gives him a hug before walking to Kurt and doing the same.

As she pulls out of Kurt’s hug he says, “Are you guys sure you don’t need us to take you to the airport?”

“No, it’s okay, Rachel’s cab is already here and we are going to the same place so there’s no reason we can’t squeeze in with them.” Brittany smiles.

Brittany fixes the strap of her purse and linking hands with Santana, she pulls her closer to the cab’s open back door. Brittany turns around and looks to Santana when she feels her girlfriend tug on her arm, causing her to stop walking. Santana lets go of her girlfriend’s hand and walks back over to Kurt. She presses her lips into a tight line smile trying not to give away too much of her emotions but her eyes betray her. She pulls Kurt into a hug and rest her chin on his shoulder. “Happy Birthday, Kurt. I am going to miss you.” The hug lingers for a moment longer before Santana stiffens and pushes Kurt back playfully. “Alright alright. We have to go.” She nods her head at Blaine, “Blaine.” She says simply, but he smiles, knowing what she is trying to say.

“You too, Santana.”  he smiles. Turning to Rachel and Wesley, Blaine says, “And then there were two…” with a chuckle. Extending his arm to Wesley to shake his hand, Wesley grabs his hand and shakes it firmly. “It was such a pleasure to finally meet you in person Wes”

“The same to both of you.” Wesley smiles. “And Happy Birthday again, Kurt. We will have to get you guys out to L.A. soon and show you around there.”

Kurt looks to Blaine quickly, “Oh, Blaine, please, please, we have to go to L.A.!”

Blaine laughs, “We will make the trip out there sometime soon.”

Wesley laughs at the two men before saying, “Well, I’ll see you guy again soon, I’m sure we will be forced into a Skype call in a couple days; anyways, so this really isn’t goodbye.” All the guys laugh knowing it’s the truth. With one last hug Wesley slips into the cab with Brittany and Santana.

Rachel stands in the middle of the sidewalk with her hands shoved in her pockets and looking between Kurt and Blaine and the sidewalk. “Aw, come here, Rachel.” Kurt motions for the brunette to come closer with his arms open. “Aw Hon, why are you crying?”

Wrapping her arms around Kurt’s waist and leaning her head on his chest as they hug she says, “I’m just going to miss you guys. Being here just reminds me of all our good memories we’ve had in this city and you know me…I’m emotional, but anyways happy birthday, Kurt and I promise to see you two again soon!”

“Absolutely, like we told Wes we might come to L.A. next time. But till then we have Skype and texting.” Kurt smiles, gaining a smile, from Rachel, who lifts her head and looks at him.

“Yeah, and keep us posted on you show, we can’t wait to see it.” Blaine pipes in.

“Oh of course!” She hugs Blaine quickly and steps back, “You two take care of each other.” She points between the adorable couple. Both men laugh. “See you guys soon, okay.” They both nod back to her and she slides into the cab next to Wesley, closing the door. Kurt and Blaine watch as the cab pulls away. Rachel looks out the back window and waves furiously to them. Kurt laughs when he sees a tanned hand reach up and grab Rachel’s, causing her to face back forward. The two men stand there on the sidewalk in front of the hotel and watch as the cab get lost in the millions of yellow cars in the city.

Rachel and Wesley arrive to the brunette’s building. Wesley climbs out the car and hurries to open the door to his girlfriend.

“Sometimes you truly act like a prince charming you know? Santana really nailed it with that nickname.” Rachel says as she climbs out of the car. Wesley laughs and closes the door.

“I think I’m going to pass out for 24 hours straight.” Rachel whines as Wesley is opening the trunk and taking out her bags.

The brunette notices the four bags she took for a two day trip and leans over to try to grab one. Wesley shakes his head and with a smile he offers, “No, allow me please.” Pointing to the entrance of the building.

Rachel smiles as they both walk to the building, take the elevator and reach Rachel’s apartment. It feels good to be back home, because although she hated to admit it, now this was her home, odd but true.

“You want to drink something?” she asks as soon as Wesley closes the door behind him. Wesley just shakes his head as he leaves the bags in the living room. Rachel frowns and walks to reach her boyfriend immediately passing her hands through his back and hugging him. “You’re a bit quiet, is everything alright?” she asks.

“I’m just tired.” He says a tad groggily. “I can’t believe I actually slept on the floor! Like…How did that happen?” He asks while resting his head on his girlfriend’s shoulder.

Rachel laughs slightly and passes her fingers through the boy’s hair. “You were really drunk and when you guys were talking I saw that very slowly all of you were starting to drift away, last thing I knew you were already passed out…”

Wesley laughs and raises his head to look into his girlfriends brown chocolate eyes. “Yeah that was fun, but what I still really can fathom is that you actually slept with me on the floor.”

Rachel blushes a little and lowers her gaze. “Ummm…I just, I just wanted to be close to you and since you were really asleep I had no other option but to sleep next to you”

Wesley smiles warmly at her and caresses her cheek, “Did you know you’re amazing?” He asks, unable to hide the emotion in his voice.

“No, _you_ ’re amazing” She replies looking into big blue eyes.

Wesley laughs and grabbing her closer to him he whispers, “Then, we’re lucky to be together, we’re an amazing couple…”

Rachel laughs and Wesley continues, “But, in all seriousness baby…Ummm I want to thank you for letting me know your friends. They are truly amazing and now I understand why you’re always talking about them, they are all unique in their own way…”

“Yeah, they’re the best friends ever…” Rachel nods.

“Yeah, they are and what I liked the most about this trip was that I realized how different all of you are from each other and yet you all look like a family…” Wesley adds.

“We are a family. They are like my lost brothers and sisters…all of them” Rachel agrees.

“I noticed that. I’m glad you have them in your life…” Wesley says as looking into Rachel’s eyes.

“I’m glad to have them too” She confesses.

“Anyways…thanks again for everything. I really, really had a great time…” The blue-eyed man adds.

Rachel leans over and kisses him. “You’re welcome, but you don’t have to thank me. You’re one of us now” Making Wesley to smile and murmur, “I like that…” As he kisses her again.

—–

After riding the short ride up the elevator, Santana lets her bag fall from her shoulder onto the ground outside their apartment door. The brunette reaches in her purse for their house key. Finally, finding them at the bottom of her purse, she slides the piece of metal into the door knob. Twisting the knob and holding open the door for Brittany to walk in first. Reaching down for her bag she walks in and closes the door behind her. Santana lets out a deep tired sigh as she sets her bag down on the sofa.

“San, we should probably unpack now or your clothes will stay in that bag…Probably on the couch, for the next week.” Brittany says quickly with a smile.

Sighing and laughing Santana picks up her bag and drags her feet to their bedroom with Brittany laughing at her girlfriend in amusement and following close behind her. Zipping open their bags and dumping out the contents onto the bed they go through the clean and dirty clothes.

Brittany picks up a few t-shirts and while she looks through them she looks shyly up to Santana. “So um, did you say anything about me to her?”

Santana looks up from the dress in her hand confused, “What? What are you talking about?”

“Dani? Did you ever mention me to her?” She speaks softly, as if she was embarrassed at bringing it up.

“Brittany, I don’t know if talking about my ex is the best idea. I mean I don’t wanna know anything about anyone you were seeing while we were split up.” Santana shivers and shakes her head trying to keep _‘Snix’_ at bay at the thought of anyone else ever even looking Brittany. But she knew her girlfriend was sweet, innocent and beautiful and that it was impossible to think no one would jump at the opportunity to be with the blonde while they were broken up.

“No, I know, just wondering. You know, if you said anything to her when we got back together or anything…”

Santana sighs while wringing her wrists. “She knows who you are yes. Because when I first started talking to her I admitted that I loved you.” Brittany smiles slightly at the thought. “But, when I came back to New York after we got back together the only thing I said was that it wasn’t fair to her for us to stay together because I was still in love with you. I didn’t tell her we were together yet. I didn’t really want to add salt to the wound, ya know?” Brittany stays quiet for a moment. “Are you mad? I’m just trying to be honest…” Santana asks softly.

Realizing she has been quiet and not wanting Santana to get the wrong idea Brittany quickly responds, “Oh, no. No I’m not mad San. I get why you did it that way. And I think that was really nice of you. I ,um… I actually think I might want to meet her some day.”

Not expecting the conversation to veer off this way, Santana looks to Brittany with wide eyes, “What. Why?”

Brittany drops the clothes she has in her hand and scoots closer to Santana grabbing her hands and softly saying, “Well, because she must not be all that bad, and she must be pretty smart if she was interested in you.”

Santana’s smile slowly spread across her face as she shakes her head slightly, “How do you do that, B?” She wraps her her arms around Brittany’s waist. “Seriously, you are way too nice.” She chuckles. “I mean, yeah, me and Sam are cool now because I know he pretty much drools on the ground Wheezy walks on, but even I don’t like to be around him for too long. I mean don’t get me wrong, I know you didn’t love him like you do me, but just the though that he might have ever touched you makes me want to punch him.”

Brittany laughs and leans in and kisses Santana’s lips, “I love you.” She kisses her again, “Even when you go all territorial and sing killer duets about me.”

Santana looks up quickly to her, “Wait you saw that?”

Brittany nods, “Mhmm. And I’m glad you never gave up because you’re the only one I want. Forever.”

Santana smiles, “Me too Britt-Britt. I love you more than anything else. You’re my soul mate.” Brittany bites her bottom lip. “But seriously, you wanna meet Dani because you two have something in common?” Santana shakes her head in amusement.

Brittany smiles and says innocently, “Yeah, why not?” Santana looks into blue eyes and wonders how she go someone so perfect. She leans in and captures Brittany’s lips with hers.

Kurt slides open the door of the loft and freezes by the door. The whole place is a mess, red cups are all scattered on the floor, empty bottles over the kitchen counter, dirty dishes on the sink; and to top that, the decoration is now hanging loosely from all the walls. If Kurt didn’t know there was a party at this place, he would say a tornado came in and swept away everything. Sighing in defeat he walks in with Blaine following right behind him.

“Well, it looks like we’ll have to do some cleaning around here.” Blaine says as soon as he enters and looks around.

“Yep…” Kurt murmurs as he closes the door behind them.

Blaine turns around and grabbing Kurt from behind he looks at his fiance and in a serious tone tells him, “I really hope you had a great birthday! Sorry about the postcard and the lack of messages and calls but I really wanted to surprise you and I asked–” He is saying Kurt raises his hand and cups Blaine’s mouth.

“Shhh, I know…And yes I had a great birthday, the best birthday ever! Thank you!” Kurt says as he slowly gives his fiance a quick peck on the lips.

“I love you, you know that, don’t you?” Blaine questions with a huge grin on his face.

Kurt replies with a huge grin on his face. “I love you too and before we start cleaning this messy place I would like to do something else” he challenges looking straight into bright hazel eyes.

“Are you suggesting what I think you’re suggesting?” Blaine asks with a playful smile

Kurt blushes and trying to suppress his smile, he adds, “Gosh! No! Well yes, but later…” he adds completely flushed.

Blaine laughs. “Okay, later sounds good, but then what do you want to do?” he asks.

Kurt recovers his voice and looking again into his fiance’s eyes as he tries to find the words, “Well…ummm you know I usually don’t approve this impromptu performances, but this time I just really want to thank you for everything and I don’t know other way to do it, so sit down and listen” He says as he helps Blaine to take a seat in one of the clean chairs.

“Are you going to–” Blaine is saying but Kurt interrupts. “Shhhh,…Just listen,” As he clicks play on the iHome and a song starts to echo through the loft.

_(Kurt)…My tea’s gone cold, I’m wondering why? I got out of bed at all. The morning rain clouds up my window and I can’t see at all. And even if I could it’d all be gray, but your picture on my wall. It reminds me that it’s not so bad…It’s not so bad…_

It’s been a while since the last time Kurt serenade Blaine. Usually it’s the other way around or they end up singing together, but this time Kurt really wants to use the song to say what sometimes he finds difficult to articulate with words.

_(Kurt)…I drank too much last night, got bills to pay, My head just feels in pain. I missed the bus and there’ll be hell today. I’m late for work again. And even if I’m there, they’ll all imply that I might not last the day. And then you call me and it’s not so bad…It’s not so bad…_

Blaine looks intently at the man in front of him. He’s by far the most talented, handsome and magical human being he has ever known and he feels so lucky to have him in his life. Kurt walks over and grabs Blaine’s hand and looking into deep hazel eyes he sings the chorus, trying to give each word the right emotion.

_(Kurt)…And I want to thank you for giving me the best day of my life…And, oh oh, just to be with you is having the best day of my life…_

Blaine smiles trying to keep his heart at bay while Kurt keeps giving a beautiful rendition of the Dido’s song. A part of him wants to stand up and interrupt Kurt with a hot long kiss, but the other part can’t stop looking at those beautiful blue eyes that are saying more than the song itself.

_(Kurt)…Push the door, I’m home at last. And I’m soaking through and through. And then you handed me a towel and all I see is you. And even if my house falls down now I wouldn’t have a clue because you’re near me…_

Kurt helps Blaine to stand up and among all the mess they start to slow dance following the slow beat of the song. Blaine rests his head on Kurt’s shoulder as he keeps singing. For a moment Blaine can swear that time just froze.

 _(Kurt)…And I want to thank you for giving me the best day of my life…And, oh, just to be with you is having the best day of my life…_ And I want to thank you for giving me the best day of my life…And, oh, just to be with you is having the best day of my life…

The song comes to an end and as the boys keep embracing each other Blaine whispers, “Thank you…”

Kurt smiles and whispers back, “I love you”

Blaine raises his head and kissing the right spots on Kurt’s neck he breathes, “I think we can clean the place later” already pulling his fiance toward their room. Kurt laughs and using his sexy voice he returns, “I thought you’d never suggest that…” Causing the shorter man to laugh as he draws the curtains to close them.

Rachel sits on the couch that is pressed against the back walk of her double wide trailer. With her legs crossed at the knees and her latest scripts sitting on top of them, she flips through the number of pages skimming over the lines she needs to know for the next scene.

Lost in the script in front of her, Rachel barely hears the soft knock on the door. Figuring it is just one of the assistant she yells for them to come on in, without looking up from the page. With the approval to come in, the door slowly pulls open and one of the producer’s assistants steps in the doorway wearing a headset around his head, a walkie talkie clipped to his belt and a clipboard in his hand. Clearing his throat to gain Rachel’s attention he then speaks up, “Miss. Berry I am sorry to interrupt you, but Mr. Thompson sent me to inform you that due to the network’s tight budget and space issue you will have to share you trailer again with another actress for a little while.”

Rachel nods because she’s gone through this before with the guest star actresses, “Okay.” She says simply with a smile and going back to her script. The idea of sharing a trailer never bothered her because the last few times she had to do it the other actresses where only there for a few weeks to film their guest appearances and then were gone.

“Okay good. She’ll be here soon. Have a nice day Miss. Berry” the producer’s assistant smiles as he walks away and closes the door behind him.

Rachel goes back to reading her script trying to think who the new actresses might be and how long they would be staying this time. Before she knows it the door is being swung open without a knock. Rachel looks up from her paper quickly when she hears the door open.

There’s a silhouette of a brunette woman standing in the doorway with the sun’s morning rays shining in around her and blinding the other brunette. “Surprise!”  Santana yells out with a huge smile. Rachel’s jaw drops, _‘That’s not a guest star…’_ She thinks to herself.


	6. Sick and Tired

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on the Glee Fan Project…Kurt had a bad dream and we were all very surprised with the new twist in the story. Thank God (or the GFP writers), it was just a dream and after a couple of scenes we could all breathe again!…Uff! Since it was Kurt’s birthday, Blaine prepared a set of surprises including breakfast in bed, Burt last minute visit, a very expensive designer jacket, lunch at a fancy restaurant and a surprise party with all their high school friends. Yeah the whole gang was there…how do they manage to pay for all those trips? We still don’t know…Anyways, the party was awesome, there was a lot of alcohol, songs and a very special conversation between the girls and the birthday boy. At the end of the day everyone had to return to their homes and Kurt took the opportunity to thank his fiance with a song…How romantic! Rachel found out she would be sharing her trailer with a new actress and then she was shocked when that actress turned out to be Santana, Weren’t we all!?…and that’s what you missed on Glee!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s the sixth episode! After last week’s episode, we’re back to normal and without any more surprises. We promise! This episode is sweet and in a way settles everything for our upcoming episode that it’s a roller-coaster of emotions so keep an eye on our pages and don’t miss any episode. Anyways, as usual here’s a link to the intro video and the Episode 6 playlist of songs in case we included a song that you may not have heard of. Remember that we wrote the characters singing these songs with their own vocal arrangements in mind that’s why some of these songs are covers and some are the originals. We hope you enjoy them!

[Intro Video](http://gleefanproject.tumblr.com/post/110285632303/previously-on-the-glee-fan-project-kurt-had-a-bad)

[Episode 6 playlist](http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv_rvGfxbXKOGnDB57ak4XchW4xvB1Ck-%20)

Kurt sits in his new office, getting ready for the important meeting about the upcoming Fashion Week event he’ll have in just a few minutes. A travel cup of tea sits next to him on his desk in an attempt to soothe his painfully sore throat. “I am not sick.” Kurt tells to himself. “I just slept with my mouth open or something. No. I refuse to be sick!” He repeats. However, his argument isn’t very convincing because about a second later, Kurt feels a tickle in the back of his throat and barks out a cough into his elbow. Kurt makes a face of disgust and repeats once more, “No, I’m not sick!”

As Kurt tries to convince himself that all the symptoms are just a product of his imagination and a bad night’s sleep his new assistant, Taylor walks in. Not looking much better than Kurt himself. “Mr Hummel–” Taylor begins, before breaking off in a loud sneeze without even covering his mouth.

“Yes?” Kurt asks, smiling uncomfortably in the presence of germs he has been trying really hard to avoid.

Taylor wipes his nose with his sleeve and says, “Isabelle wants everyone in the conference room in five minutes.”

“I’ll be right there.” Kurt assures the man, who then gives him a polite smile, and leaves the office, but not without sneezing again by the door.

Once he is gone, Kurt grabs his bottle of hand sanitizer and rubs it furiously on his hands and up his forearms. “This place is just a breeding ground for bacteria…” Kurt mumbles, before drying his hands on his pants and grabbing his papers. Then, he leaves his office, just in time to feel his phone vibrate. He’s pleasantly surprised to see the picture of his fiance flashing on the screen. He presses the green phone icon and then holds the phone to his ear.

 “Hey, honey.” Kurt says, love emitting from his voice.

 _“Hey, babe, you left so early this morning. I didn’t even get the chance to say good morning.”_ Blaine pouts.

“I’m sorry. I had to finalize some stuff for Fashion Week.” Kurt clarifies. “Oh, did you get my note?” He asks, suddenly remembering the quick note he left on Blaine’s nightstand.

 _“Umm…I think so.”_ Blaine says sounding unsure. _“It just says, ‘Wedding! Important! No reschedule! Go!’…I wasn’t really sure what that meant…Care to translate?”_ He replies with a laugh.

“Sorry, I was in a rush.” Kurt laughs. “We’re supposed to have an appointment with the wedding venue coordinator to talk about the last details for the venue today, but there is no way I can go. I tried to reschedule, but she has a lot of appointments and said it was impossible. Can you please, please, please go for me?” Kurt begs. Blaine sighs over the phone. Kurt knows that wedding details aren’t Blaine’s forte and that lately he hasn’t even cared about them, but he should care about them so the blue-eyed man insists. “Please?” He tries again. “I’m making my puppy dog eyes…You know the ones you can’t resist.”

Blaine lets out a little laugh before finally sighing and saying, _“Fine…I’ll go”_

“Great! I love you so much!” Kurt says excitedly. “Make sure you take notes for me! I want to know everything you guys talk about, especially the flower designs. Oh! And make sure you ask about the extra chairs I requested.” He rambles. As he continues to talk, he sees Taylor motioning for him to come into the conference room. “Okay, honey, I have to go my meeting is starting! Love you!” Kurt rushes, hanging up the phone before Blaine even has a chance to respond.  

Kurt takes his place in at the table with the rest of his co-workers and listens as Isabelle goes on and on about different topics on her agenda. He tries to listen, but his sore throat keeps bothering him. Talking about the wedding had given him momentary relief, but now the sore and bad mood had returned with a vengeance.

Kurt clears his throat repeatedly, causing Isabelle to stop her speech and ask if he’s okay. “Yeah, yeah, sorry go on…” Kurt brings his hand to his throat rubbing it and trying to soothe the soreness. Isabelle sends him a concerned smile as she continues talking to the rest of the employees in the room. He tries to fight back the coughs that are threatening to come out the whole time, willing himself to ignore the instant scratching feeling along the back of his throat.

When the meeting is over, Kurt gets up and heads back to his office. He sits down with a sigh and then quickly turns his face into the crook of his elbow and lets out a loud sneeze. “Crap!” He mutters, coming to the realization that he just might be a little bit sick.

It has been over three weeks since Santana made her appearance as the new actress Rachel would be sharing her trailer with. The tension between the two over the past few weeks has been thick as molasses. Santana had a new vanity station brought into the trailer, saying she refused to share with _McStubles_. Rachel on the other hand had asked not to share stylists and makeup artists with her and they both should have separate closets. These small disagreements have been causing small fights between them every now and then to the extent that people at the network were starting to get used to them.

 Both brunettes sit in front of their respective mirrors. Santana looks over her shoulder to Rachel and sees Rachel looking in the mirror fixing her hair after her hairdresser left the trailer about ten minutes ago.

“You know you hair looks horrible like that, right? I don’t know why they insist on doing it like that you should probably tell them to do something different, better yet you should probably just pull a _‘Britney’_ and just shave it.” Santana says while reapplying her lipstick, turning back around and looking the mirror of her vanity.

“You know what, Santana? I’ve had enough!” Rachel stands up from her chair and stomps the short distance over to Santana. She has bit her tongue for three weeks every time Santana said something snarky to her, but enough was enough. “I’m tired of you and your sassy remarks! Just admit it! You auditioned for this show knowing it was within my network and you did it just to get at me because you like to see me upset, you are rude and cruel Santana!” She yells.

Santana stands straight up and turns to look at Rachel eye to eye. “You know what?  You’re right! Yes, I love seeing you upset!” Her voice drips with sarcasm, “Even more so when I’m the cause…I can’t help it, it brings joy to my day. But you know? Shockingly this time it didn’t have anything to do with you! You really think that low of me still?” For a split second you can hear the hurt in Santana’s voice before she quickly covers it up. “You are so selfish, this could be my big break, Berry. I got the lead role! Do you realize how big of a deal that is for me? Just admit you’re jealous of me because you know I’m better than you…that’s why you didn’t tell me about the role when you first heard of it, right? You’re jealous…well, breaking news Berry! This isn’t Broadway and you’re not the only big star anymore! This is not high school! You’re just afraid of competition and you’re afraid that it will finally be proven that I’m better than you! You’re jealous of me, always have been and always will be!”

Santana lets out a long breath she didn’t realize she was holding. Before the full length of her breath can escape her lips she feels a firm slap reign across her face. Her jaw drops as her left hand snapped up to grab the side of her face. Looking up to Rachel with hard eyes Santana notices Rachel’s shocked expression at her own actions. “Oh-Santana I am so sorry–”

“–Don’t.” Santana interrupts harshly. Rachel opens her mouth to say something else, but Santana interrupts her again, “I said, don’t! I will not hit you back Rachel, but you best believe I want to…Sometimes you are beyond annoying!!” The anger rises back up in Santana’s chest. Not knowing how else to let out her frustration with out hitting Rachel back she slams her hand down on the corkboard hanging on the wall next to them causing a few pieces of paper to tumbling to the ground. She looks down for a second as one of the papers catches her eye. Leaning down she picks up a photo of Rachel and her from two months ago when the were celebrating at _La Prime_. She thought then that Rachel was genuinely happy and excited for her. Looking at the picture now she can’t help but scoff. _‘Rachel must be a great actress’_ She thinks to herself. Santana grips the photo and looks up to Rachel, “I–”

Santana’s words are cut off before they can even start as Wesley runs through the trailer door. “Rachel, are you okay?” He looks between the two women. “Meg told me she heard screaming coming out from here.” Both woman stand still their eyes never leaving each others. “Santana? Are you okay?” He asks softly seeing the red mark across her face.

“I’m fine.” She chokes on a lump in her throat. “Never better.” She turns and walks out the door.

Rachel stands in the middle of the trailer looking at the door the Latina just escaped from, “Great!” She says, crossing her arms, still fuming with anger.

—–

Santana walks down the networks pave-way with makeshift sets lining each side of her. The wind is out and tossing her hair around as the sun beats down on caramel skin. Closing her eyes for a brief second. She then reopens them as she starts to sing.

_(Santana)…Hush, don’t speak. When you spit your venom, keep it shut I hate it, when you hiss and preach, about your new messiah ’cause your theories catch fire…_

Rachel bends down to pick up the scattered papers on the floor as she sings. As she crouches down she sees Wesley bend down and reach a hand out to help. She quickly pushes his hands away silently telling him she’s got it. Wes puts his hands up in defeat, backing away and watching as Rachel cleans up the mess herself.        

_(Rachel)…I can’t find no silver lining. I don’t mean to judge. But when you read your speech, it’s tiring. Enough is enough…_

After gathering all her belongings from the floor, Rachel grabs a box from the table beside her that is label _‘Rachel Berry/Personal Belongings’_ and shoves the pictures and notes in it. She stands up with the box still in her arms. Wesley looks at her with wondering eyes. She lets out a huff and rolls her eyes before storming out the trailer. It takes Wesley a second to realize Rachel left. He quickly turns and runs after her closing the trailer door behind him.

_(Rachel)…I’m covering my ears like a kid. When your words mean nothing, I go la la la…_

Santana makes her way to the parking lot. Setting her shaking hands on top of one of the cars as she leans her weight on it. She shakes her head slightly still thinking about the words Rachel said to her.

_(Santana)…I’m turning up the volume when you speak ’cause if my heart can’t stop it, I find a way to block it, I go…_

Now leaning with her back pressed up against the car, Santana looks down to her hands and notices that she still has the picture of her and Rachel in her hands. Rolling her eyes she takes a couple steps to the nearest trash can and tosses it in with the garbage. Dusting her hands off she turns her back to the waste bin and starts to walk away.

_(Both)…La la, la la la la la la la la la aa. La la na na, la la la la la na na na na na…_

Santana and Rachel remember the words they say to each other and at the same time they both cover their ears and shake their heads.

_(Santana)…I find a way to block it, I go…_

Santana has only taken about three steps away from the trash can when something stops her in her tracks. She stands, still kicking rocks with her nude pumps and rolling her bottom lip between her teeth. Quickly looking from side to side to make sure no one is watching her, she slowly back tracks towards the trash can. Looking inside it she sees the picture sitting on top of a few stray papers. She looks around one more time before sticking her hand in the trash can quickly and pulling the picture back up, for some reason she can’t let it go.

_(Both)…La la na na, la la la la la na na na na na. La la na na, la la la la la na na na na na…_

Santana looks quickly to the picture she just picked and rolls her eyes. Rachel knows Wes is just following her so instead of stopping she speeds up her walk.

_(Rachel)…If our love is running out of time I won’t count the hours, rather be a coward…_

The brunette storms through her boyfriends’ trailer door. Walking over to a small table in the corner of Wesley’s room Rachel starts setting up her belongings. Wesley hurries into his trailer before the door slams shut and sees what his girlfriend is doing. He stands there with a shocked and confused expression _‘Is she moving into my trailer?’_ He questions himself.

_(Santana)…When our worlds collide I’m gonna drown you out before I lose my mind…_

Santana starts walking and before she knows it she finds herself back in front of her shared trailer door. She slowly walks up the steps and opens the door. She expected to find Rachel still there, probably burning something of hers, but she is surprise to find that the trailer is empty along with most of Rachel’s things being gone.

_(Santana)…I can’t find no silver lining. I don’t mean to judge. But when you read your speech, it’s tiring. Enough is enough…_

Santana gets mad and tapes the picture in one of the mirrors of the shared trailer and sits by the couch looking at her phone hesitating whether or not to call Rachel to find out where she is.

_(Rachel)…I’m covering my ears like a kid. When your words mean nothing, I go la la la. I’m turning up the volume when you speak…_

Rachel starts to brush her hair as if she was suddenly okay and not mad anymore. Wesley just crosses his arms and looks at her. The brunette turns around and gives him a questioning look like asking him, _‘what?’_ Wesley rolls his eyes, because his girlfriend is literally acting like a kid.

_(Santana)…’Cause if my heart can’t stop it, I find a way to block it, I go…_

Santana looks up from her phone and towards her vanity mirror where she has a picture of Brittany. Quickly scrolling away from Rachel’s name on her phone’s contact book she reaches Brittany’s and without hesitation, she presses the green phone icon and brings the phone to her ear, needing to hear her girlfriend’s voice.

_(Both)…La la la la la la la la la la la la la la. La la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la. La la la la la la la la la la la la la la la. La la la la la…_

Santana and Rachel sigh in defeat as they both continue singing.

_(Rachel)…I’m covering my ears like a kid. When your words mean nothing, I go la la la. I’m turning off the volume when you speak ‘cause if my heart can’t stop it, I found a way to block it…_

Rachel places the brush back down on the counter-top and stands up to walk out for some air, but is quickly stopped when Wesley’s hand softly grabs her hand.

_(Santana)…I’m covering my ears like a kid. When your words mean nothing, I go la la la. I’m turning off the volume when you speak ‘cause if my heart can’t stop it, I found a way to block it, I go…_

With the phone pressed to her ear, Santana listens to the ring tone repeat in the background as she sits on the couch that divides the two sides of the trailer.

_(Both)…La la la la la la la la la la la la la la. La la la la la la la la la…_

Santana raises her hands in defeat because apparently this day is going to suck anyways. Rachel freezes for a second and huffs exasperated at her boyfriend. .

_(Rachel)…I found a way to block it, I go…_

Wesley  holds up his pointer finger telling Rachel to wait a second. He jogs over the the trailer door and closes it. Then, taking his girlfriend’s hands in his, he directs her to his couch to sit.

_(Santana)…La la la la la la la la la la la la la la. La la la la la la la la la la la la la la la. La la la la…I found a way to block it, I go…_

Santana listens to the phone ring until it goes to voice-mail. She needs to talk to Brittany about what happened, but apparently her girlfriend is a bit busy.

_(Both)…La la la la la la la la la la la la la la. I found a way to block it, I go…_

Wesley takes a seat next to Rachel. The brunette has her arms crossed in front of her and she’s pouting. Wesley tries to look for the right words and taking a deep breath he asks, “Are you going to explain me what happened between you and Santana?”

“No.”, Rachel snaps.

“Rachel…” Wesley pushes, trying not to lose his patience.

Rachel rolls her eyes and Wesley continues, “I saw her cheek…I know you slapped her, but why?”

“Because she deserved it! And now if you don’t want me to slap you too leave me alone!” Rachel rants and stands up walking out the trailer leaving a very stunned Wesley.

—–

Santana hangs up the phone and quickly types a short message to Brittany. _‘I need to talk to you. I’m fine, don’t worry. Just need to talk to you about something that happened with Rachel. ILY._ ’

Santana looks around and throws the phone to the couch as she leans back in her seat and sighs as she closes her eyes.

“Ms. Berry! five minutes!” A guy from Rachel’s show pokes through the door.

Santana snaps her eyes open and turns around looking at the crew member with killing eyes. “She’s not here!”

“Oh, I’m sorry I thought she’d be here…Sorry to bother you Ms. Lopez…” The guy apologizes as he slowly closes the door of the trailer leaving Santana rolling her eyes again and waiting to start filming so she can forget about her _‘friend’_.

Blaine arrives at _The Plaza_ hotel and walks over to the reception desk where a woman in her early 30’s is giving a key to an older lady who just checked in. After the old lady walks away, Blaine leans over and asks, “Good afternoon miss, could you please tell where can I find Ms. Williams’ office? I’m here to see some details about a wedding…”

“Good afternoon sir, just follow that hall and turn to the left and you’ll find the CPS offices. Ms. Williams’ office is the fifth door to your right” The receptionist says with a smile in her face.

“Thank you.” Blaine says as he makes his way through the hall.

When he’s about to knock on the glass door that has Ms. Tara Williams name on it his phone starts to ring. He takes it out from the pocket of his pants and smiles. “Hi, Jess!” He answers, his voice as friendly as ever.

 _“Blaine! Where the hell are you?”_ The girl at the other side of the phone asks worried.

“I’m running some errands…Why?” Blaine replies confused.

 _“Did you forget the rehearsal?”_ Jessica asks already knowing the answer.

‘ _Crap!’_ Blaine thinks to himself. “I-I…Could you please tell Mrs. Judkins that I’m a bit late? Tell her I’m at the doctor or I don’t know come up with something, please!?” He begs.

Jessica sighs through the phone and says, _“Fine, I’ll tell her something, but she’s going to kill you anyways…”_

“I know, but I totally forgot! Kurt asked me to go check on some stuff about the wedding, but I’ll be there soon, okay?”

 _“Okay, but don’t take too long, or she’s going to kill us both!”_ She demands.

“Okay, okay…See you soon, and thanks again..Bye!”

 _“Bye.”_ Jessica says as Blaine hangs the phone and knocks at Ms. Williams’ office.

A young lady opens the door almost immediately. She has a huge grin on her face and she’s already extending her hand to greet the hazel-eyed man. “You must be Mr. Anderson right? Kurt has told me so much about you!”

Blaine smiles and extending his hand to greet the lovely lady “A pleasure Ms. Williams, but please call me Blaine, I’m way too young to be Mr. Anderson…”

Ms. Williams smiles and stepping back so that Blaine can walk in, she adds, “I’m Tara…”

Blaine smiles back as Tara immediately jumps into business. “Please take a seat Blaine. We can check some of the details here and then we can move to the ballroom so we can check the tables and all the other details, is that okay with you?” She asks all business like.

Blaine nods, confused, and just sits down in the black leather chair. Kurt never told him what this important appointment was about so he’s just playing by ear.

“Okay, so I have here all the requests Kurt made and what was at the top of our list was if we could coordinate both places…” Tara says as she reads the list.

“Both places?” Blaine asks completely confused.

“Yeah for the ceremony and the reception…” Tara replies matter of factly. Blaine, not wanting to show his lack of knowledge about his own wedding, mutters, “Oh, yeah…”

“Well, you already know that when we rent the Ballroom for weddings we usually have both events at the same place, but Kurt warned me this was not going to be some ordinary wedding, so I wasn’t surprised when he requested that…Anyways I talked to Kelsi and guess what?” She asks excited.

Blaine, not knowing who Kelsi is, and what’s her role in all this mess, just asks back, “What?” faking interest.

“She agreed to coordinate with us to have the same type of decoration in both places and create the same atmosphere you guys want!” Tara exclaims clapping her hands excited and proudly of her work.

“Awesome!” Blaine replies faking a new smile.

“I went to meet her yesterday and she gave me a tour around the place you two chose and it’s amazing, Blaine! How did you guys find it?”

“Ummm…Kurt…” He mutters feeling a little guilty because he doesn’t know the place she’s talking about. He didn’t even know there would be two places instead of one.

“He really has an eye for decoration, and fashion, and design, and yeah weddings too. Anyways, I think we can cross that from the list now…” She says smiling and quickly crossing out something on the piece of paper she has in front of her. “Let’s go then to the important stuff…”

Tara starts to read a very long list of things to do and check, and Blaine gets lost somewhere between _‘booking the florist’_ and _‘meeting with the caterer’_. It’s a lot of information that he still can’t begin to process. Suddenly, his phone buzzes and he quickly takes it out from his pocket and reads the text. It’s his friend Jessica again. _‘Blaine! Hurry up! Mrs. Judkins is not happy! We’re rehearsing without you the whole play, but I have to go,_ _she’s about to kill someone!’_ Blaine shifts uncomfortable on his chair and texts back. _‘Just 30 mins tops! I swear!’_

After Blaine clicks the send button, he returns his attention to Tara who’s now saying something about linens. “–and Kurt suggested these colors for the table linens, but I was thinking that maybe we could try to play with that as well a bit, don’t you think? Maybe you could suggest more colors? And then we can create a combination based on both your choices…”

“No, those are fine, whatever Kurt wants…Ummm if he wants those colors then let’s use them.” Blaine replies feeling completely lost.

“Okay, then, I’ll tell Kelsi to use this set of colors for the chairs at the ceremony as well. Now, let’s go to the ballroom. We need to check the tables and the big bouquets placements and–”

“Yeah, yeah, let’s go…” Blaine tries rushing her, not wanting to hear the whole list of to do things again.

Tara guides Blaine through some doors until they arrive to The Plaza’s main Ballroom. “This is the place where you two will have your wedding reception…” She says pointing around.

Blaine’s jaw drops because the place is beautiful and even though it’s almost empty and all the lights are off, he can really see why Kurt picked that place. Tara starts to talk about all the other details like the flowers, the tables, the stage, the gifts’ table, the bar etc. But Blaine is not paying attention, he’s still looking around completely stunned.

“Blaine!” Tara says, bringing him back to the reality.

“Yes…? I mean yeah! That sounds great!” He trails off.

Tara frowns confused. “I was asking you, if you want the stage here or there?” She asks pointing to the opposite sides.

Blaine looks around, and not knowing what to do he plays safe, “You know what Tara? Just do whatever you think Kurt would like. I know you guys have talked about this already…”

“But Blaine! This is important! We need to picture everything to start asking for the decoration and give you the final cost…Kurt has very specific requests and we don’t have much time before the big day…Well, we do, but we have a lot of stuff to check and not a lot of meetings. This place is almost crowded all weekends, so this is one of the few chances you’ll have to really see the space as a whole… That’s why we are here.”  Tara exclaims.

Blaine smiles. “Yeah I know and the place looks amazing, and you’re doing a great job. So far I liked everything you’ve said, so just keep up with the good work and follow Mr. Hummel’s desires” He says as he takes out his phone that was suddenly vibrating again.

“Sorry Tara, but I really have to take this call…” He says pointing to his phone.

“No problem.” Tara says sounding not so convinced. She takes her job seriously and Blaine hasn’t been the best client so far.  

“Hi, Jess.” Blaine says walking a few steps away to have more privacy.

 _“I can’t keep lying Blaine! We need you here now! This is the last week before our opening night and Mrs. Judkins is losing her mind because you’re not here!”_ Jessica says through the phone.

“I’m almost on my way Jess…ten minutes, okay? I can’t talk right now…Bye see you in ten!” Blaine repeats as he hangs the phone and walks back to where Tara is impatiently waiting. “Where were we?” he asks flashing a smile to the venue lady.

“The stage…The details…” Tara says.

“Look this place looks great and I’m sure Kurt will love all of this. The stage can be …Ummmm…Let’s see…Over there” Blaine points to one of the options she gave him. “…And everything else is great! Is there anything else you need me here for? I kind of am in a hurry…”

The lady looks at him with a slightly disappointed look and murmurs, “Ummm, well I guess that–Ummm I mean, we have all of Kurt’s notes on file, so we can just follow those? We normally have the couple finalizing everything in person–” She trails off.

“Oh, well I’m here and I say that whatever you have is good and for the other details just follow Kurt’s notes. So it’s finalized.” He claps his hands and rubs them together, “So, we’re good?”

Tara nods and before she can even say _‘bye’;_ Blaine is already making his way out the hotel to head to the school to catch the end of his show’s rehearsal.

After singing and dancing around the fake western dirt road, Kurt jogs off the stage. Slipping behind the curtain where Jackie stands off to the side holding a bottle of water, “Are you sure you’re okay?” She hands him the water, “Drink! Your throat sounds scratchy. I mean don’t get me wrong, you still killed it out there, but you were just moving a little slower and your face looks really pale. More pale than usual.”

“Yeah, I know, I think I’m starting to come down with something.” Kurt walks over to his bag and grabs a towel wiping the sweat from his neck. He unbuttons his shirt, stripping it off his shoulders and causing Jackie to blush slightly. “But I’ve been taking vitamins and decongestants ever since I started feeling it coming on, but I still can’t shake this cold.” Kurt quickly turns and coughs into his elbow. Looking back up to Jackie he apologizes, “Sorry.”

“It’s okay.” Jackie smiles softly to him, “But maybe you should’ve stayed home.”

“I can’t. I already missed some classes to do the Fashion Week preparations, but I really can’t miss the final rehearsals, I’m the lead character.” Kurt bends down and grabs a fresh shirt from his bag slipping it over his head and pulling the hem down his torso.

“Well, if you don’t slow down and get some rest you may not be better for the show. It’s June and the show is coming up in two weeks.”

“Yeah, I know you’re right. I’m headed home now actually. I’m going to take a warm bath and put some vapor rub on and go to bed early.”

“That sounds like a good idea. Well, be safe, and I’ll see you on Monday for Fundamentals class.”

After saying their goodbyes and Kurt changing the rest of his clothes from his character’s costume he grabs his bag and heads out of the school’s theater. As soon as his feet hit the concrete sidewalk his phone starts to ring. He digs through his bag as a few more coughs escape from his throat, feeling the ache clench his chest.

Finally reaching his phone, he presses the talk button answering the call and through a few congested sniffles he say, “Hello?”

 _“Kurt! I swear to God I hate Santana! She’s a bitch!”_ Kurt pulls the phone away from his ear at the sound of the screaming coming through the phone’s speaker.

“Rachel, Hi.” Kurt sighs as he grabs a tissue out of his pocket to wipe his already raw red nose. “What did she do this time?”

 _“She did this on purpose! That stupid show she’s in is in my network and now she is sharing a trailer with me and she is so annoying Kurt! She is doing this to steal my spotlight! What is it with her and always trying to ruin things for me!?”_ Rachel rambles in a heated rage.

“Okay, Okay! Rachel Hold on! I have another call. Give me like, two seconds.” Kurt pulls the phone from his ear and switches lines before press the device back to his ear. “Hello?”

 _“Lady Hummel! Glad you’re there! Your friend is a Puta! Ella me abofeteó! (She slapped me!)_ ” Santana screams.

Recognizing the Latina’s but not fully understanding what she is saying Kurt interrupts her by shouting over her voice. “Santana! English please! I don’t speak Spanish!”

 _“She slapped me Kurt! Like full on bitch slap! I’m an actress! My face is my tool! How dare she?”_ Santana exclaims through the phone.

“Okay Santana just hold on” He switches the phone line back over, “Rachel?”

“Yes?” Rachel questions a bit confused.

“Sorry, you were saying?”  Kurt says as he slips into a cab.

 _“Santana, Kurt! I can’t stand her!”_ Rachel repeats.

Kurt rolls his eyes while Rachel continues to rant about the Latina. Getting a bit tired and not being in the right mood to keep hearing both girls shenanigans he hits the three way call button on his phone linking the phone lines. “Alright tell me what really happened!”

Both girls start talking at the same time not knowing is a three way call as they throw out insults about the other.

“Santana? Rachel?” they yell back at each other once they realized about Kurt’s trap.

 _“No! No, I called to talk to Kurt not you!”_ Rachel immediately snaps.

 _“So can it, Berry! I called to talk to him too.”_ The two woman yell back and forth at each other completely ignoring the man they both called to talk to.

Kurt rolls his eyes and looks toward the driver of the cab, who’s listening to his friends fighting through the phone. “You should have seen them when they lived under the same roof.” He murmurs,  causing the driver to laugh.

After the taxi pulls up to the front of the loft’s building, Kurt pays the driver and slips out of the cab. Making his way up the building’s concrete steps he walks through the front door. He reaches his loft door, pulling it open as he tries to suppress another cough which just lead to a painful sneeze. Feeling like crap and getting tired of his friend’s nonsense Kurt clears his throat and says, “Listen! None of this would happen if you Santana stopped taking jobs at the same place as Rachel. It’s a big world Santana, find another work place! And Rachel, stop slapping people when you get angry. You have to get control of your anger issues. And try to be happy for Santana, she’s right this is a big deal for her too. Now if you don’t mind I have way bigger things to deal with! Goodbye!” Kurt hangs up his phone and flops down on the couch closing his eyes as exhaustion takes over him.

Blaine slides the door open and exclaims, “I’m home!” To Kurt, but nobody replies. He looks around and finds Kurt sleeping peacefully on one of the couches. He smiles sweetly at his sleeping fiance and leaving his bag by the door, he kneels next to him and tries to wake him up.

“Kurt, babe…Wake up…Let’s go to bed.” Blaine whispers sweetly.

Kurt starts to shift and very slowly he opens his blue eyes.

“Hi, there sleepy head” Blaine says with a smile on his face. “You fell asleep on the couch, let’s go to bed…”

“What time is it?” Kurt asks while rubbing his eyes.

Blaine looks at his clock and replies, “Almost ten…”

“Did you just get home?” Kurt asks and Blaine just nods as an answer.  “You’ve been gone longer than I thought.” Kurt says standing up and stretching himself. “I bet you have tons of notes! I wanna know everything! How was the appointment with Tara” He asks, his voice sounding a bit sick and sleepy, but very excited.

“You don’t sound okay, are you getting sick?” Blaine asks trying to change the subject off of the appointment.

“I don’t feel good, but I want to know…How was it?” Kurt asks again.

“It was good…Ummm it went smoothly…” Blaine says walking away to the kitchen and grabbing a glass of water.

“Please tell me that Kelsi said _‘yes’_?” Kurt asks, while taking a seat at the kitchen table with his wedding plan scrapbook.

“Who’s Kelsi?” Blaine asks, but in that moment he remembers that Tara mentioned a Kelsi so he quickly replies, “Oh, yeah, the lady from the other place, yeah, yeah she said yes.”

“Perfect!” Kurt exclaims while making some notes. “Give me all the details!” Kurt demands without looking up from his scrapbook.

“Ummm…You want some tea? Your throat sounds like it could use some lemon tea…” Blaine suggests.

“Yeah, thanks honey. It’s been bothering me all day and I could really use one of your magical lemon teas…But keep talking, what did you guys talk about?” Kurt pushes.

“Ummm, not much actually…” Blaine says, looking away and focusing on the tea he has to prepare.

“But you were away for hours…” Kurt replies, confused.

“Oh, yeah, but it didn’t take that long. I went to the school to rehearse and the gym afterwards” Blaine says while pouring the hot water in Kurt’s favorite mug.

“Oh, okay…Then give me all your notes..” Kurt says already gesturing his fiance to hand him all the notes he’s sure the hazel-eyed man took.

“I didn’t take any notes sorry…” Blaine apologizes.

“Don’t worry, then tell me all you remember and I’ll write it down” Kurt says getting ready to write everything down.

“Ummm…” Blaine hesitates and grabbing the tea he adds. “Here drink your tea…It’s going to help you get rid of the itching.”

“Thanks…Well? The details?” Kurt asks again, while taking a sip of the hot tea and making a relief face afterwards.

Blaine turns around and knowing he can’t keep trying to deceive Kurt he confesses. “I’m sorry, Kurt! I really went to the appointment and the place looks great, but the truth is that I had some things to do and since I really didn’t know what she was talking about I just told her to do what she thought you’d choose because, let’s be honest…This is your area of expertise not mine…” Blaine trails off slowly turning around to face his fiance.

Kurt immediately gets mad and standing up from the table, he finally confronts Blaine about his lack of interest about the wedding. “What is your problem? Since you gave me this ring…” He yells, pointing to the silver ring he has been wearing for quite some time on his left hand. “…You haven’t said a thing about our wedding! I know I was reluctant at first, but I told you I wanted to get married this year and you agreed! You said it was okay! What’s wrong now? Because I swear I don’t understand! You’ve left me alone with this! I chose the date! I chose the place! I’m practically doing everything!” He says raising his hands in the air showing his frustration.

Blaine tries to speak, but he’s shocked at Kurt’s reaction, so he just stands there staring at his fiance who keeps yelling. “I asked you to do one little thing! One Blaine! And now you’re telling me that you had things to do? Seriously? What has been going on with you that is more important than our wedding!? Hell! Even my father was more interested with how the wedding planning was going than you!” Kurt yells, very angry.

Blaine looks at his fiance with wide eyes. Kurt very rarely yells during a disagreement and when he does it, Blaine knows he’s in trouble. “It’s not that Kurt, it’s just–“, He’s saying when Kurt interrupts him.

“No! Of course it’s that! You’ve been avoiding everything about our wedding. And the thing is that you didn’t have the time or the interest for that matter, to do the one thing I asked you to do!” Kurt snaps.

“Can I please–” Blaine tries to explain, but Kurt is too mad to even let him talk.

“No, you can’t! I don’t have time for your half assed apologies…You know why? Because I have a wedding to plan!” Kurt yells, taking a seat and passing furiously the pages of the scrapbook.

Blaine looks at his fiance and gets mad that he doesn’t even give him a chance to explain himself and with a serious tone fuels the agreement, “You know what? You’re right! Now it’s too late for my half assed apologies…I’ll be back later” He fumes walking away and making sure to slide the door hard to show his anger too.

Kurt looks at the now closed door and murmurs, “Yeah…Too late.” as a song starts to ring in his head.

_(Kurt)…I’m holding on your rope got me ten feet off the ground. And I’m hearing what you say, but I just can’t make a sound…_

Kurt starts singing, but a sudden coughing fit interrupts him. “Perfect! Now I can’t even sing!” He exclaims closing the scrapbook and waking to his bedroom.

Once inside, he changes into his pj’s and gets into bed, not waiting for Blaine to come home. He doesn’t want to talk to him any time soon.

Blaine storms out the loft and starts to walk without a clear direction in mind. He just wants to be as far away as possible from Kurt. He needs to clear his mind so he walks for 20 minutes straight until he reaches the Highland Park. He looks around and laughs at the irony. Kurt loves this park and for some unknown reason, he ended up going there.

A tiny smile escapes from his lips when his fiance comes to his mind. He shakes his head and murmurs to himself, “Don’t think about him Blaine! You’re mad at him”

Blaine starts to walk around the trees and tries to find an empty bench. It’s late, but this park is always full of people who enjoy the night strolls. Looking at the distance, he spots the small bridge over the lake and walks there. He loves the view from that bridge.

Looking over the water he can’t help but talk to himself, he needs to let out all his feelings somehow. “He didn’t even let me explain what happened! He just yelled and shut me up!” He rants as people passes behind him.

 _“He had enough reasons to be mad at you…”_ A tiny voice inside his head murmurs as Blaine rolls his eyes.

“I have enough reasons to be mad at him too!” He replies to himself, trying to convince himself that he’s right, though deep down, he knows he’s just fooling himself.

 _“No, you don’t!”_ The voice repeats.

“Of course I have! I can be mad too!” Blaine exclaims, rolling his eyes as he starts to hum trying to shut the voice inside his head.

_(Blaine)…Last night we went to bed not talkin’ ‘cause we’d already said too much. I faced the wall, you faced the window. Bound and determined not to touch…_

As he sings, Blaine starts to throw small sticks and leaves into the water. He gets lost at how they hit against the clear water and disappear after a few seconds. He wants to throw his anger to the water and make it disappear too, but he can’t.

_(Blaine)…We’ve been married 7 years now, sometimes it feels like 21. I’m still mad at you this mornin’, coffee’s ready if you want some…_

After a few minutes, he runs out of sticks and leaves and his anxiety starts to increase. Getting impatient, he walks away and keeps singing as he walks around the park. Every now and then he kicks his foot against the floor to let out some of his frustration, raising dust every time he does it.

_(Blaine)…I’ve been up since five, thinkin’ bout me and you. And I’ve got to tell you the conclusion I’ve come to…_

Blaine finds and empty bench and takes a seat closing his eyes. Images of Kurt laughing and smiling at him come to his mind and he takes out his phone. Sliding his finger through the screen, he quickly types a small text that reads, _‘I’m sorry…’_ , but when he’s about to press the send button, memories from the past 30 minutes or so, come to his mind. Shaking his head, he deletes the text message and turns off his phone to avoid temptations.

_(Blaine)…I’ll never leave, I’ll never stray. My love for you will never change, but I ain’t ready to make up we’ll get around to that. I think I’m right, I think you’re wrong. I’ll probably give in before long. Please don’t make me smile…I just wanna be mad for a while…_

Standing up from the bench, Blaine resumes his walking until he reaches Kurt’s favorite meadow. His fiance loves to sit down there and read some book while Blaine just lays on his lap and hums some songs for him. Blaine closes his eyes at let the memories flood his mind.

_(Blaine)…For now you might as well forget it. Don’t run your fingers through my hair. Yeah, that’s right, I’m bein’ stubborn. No, I don’t wanna go back upstairs…_

Images from the past half year of them living alone flash through his mind and he realizes he’s making a big mistake. Still in the meadow, Blaine takes out his phone and turning it on again he calls Kurt, but his fiance doesn’t reply. His phone is off.

_(Blaine)…I’m gonna leave for work without a goodbye kiss. but as I’m drivin’ off, just remember this…_

Blaine exhales defeated and looks at his watch. It’s pretty late, so he turns around and starts to make his way home in hope to have the chance to talk to his fiance before he goes to sleep.

_(Blaine)…I’ll never leave, I’ll never stray. My love for you will never change, but I ain’t ready to make up we’ll get around to that. I think I’m right, I think you’re wrong. I’ll probably give in before long. Please don’t make me smile…I just wanna be mad for a while…_

The frustrated and hurt, Blaine arrives to the building and looking up, he notices that the lights of their loft are off. He takes a deep breath and starts to climb up to the stairs until he reaches the door of his home.

_(Blaine)…I’ll never leave, I’ll never stray. My love for you will never change, but I ain’t ready to make up we’ll get around to that. I think I’m right, I think you’re wrong. I’ll probably give in before long. Please don’t make me smile…I just wanna be mad for a while. I just wanna be mad for a while. I just wanna be mad for a while…_

He enters the apartment, but as he already expected, Kurt is not waiting for him. The scrapbook is still over the kitchen table next to the untouched cup of tea. Blaine shakes his head getting mad at himself. He knows this is all his fault.

_(Blaine)…I just wanna be mad for a while…_

 The song ends and Blaine walks to the room to find Kurt completely asleep. He quickly changes into his pj’s and lays down next to him, being very careful not to wake him.

Blaine tries to sleep, but he can’t and starts to shift uncomfortably. He doesn’t like to go to sleep mad with his fiance, so in an attempt to redeem himself and calm his demons, he whispers, “I’m sorry.” But Kurt doesn’t move.

The silence overwhelms him and it’s only then that Blaine notices that Kurt is getting really sick. The blue-eyed man usually doesn’t snore, but tonight a slight snore is coming out of his chest. Blaine pays more attention and notices that in fact Kurt is very congested. Blaine stands up and takes out another blanket from the closet to cover Kurt and make sure he’s not cold.

“I love you…” He whispers to Kurt as he lies down beside him.

With just the stuffy breathing of his fiance to kill the overwhelming silence of the night, Blaine starts to think about what he has been doing in the the past six months. _“You have to admit it Blaine! You made a mistake! Maybe your intentions were good, but look at what you’ve done! Kurt thinks you don’t care about the wedding, but most importantly he thinks you left him alone!”_ The tiny voice inside his head yells at him again.

“But I just wanted this to be what he has always dreamed of!” Blaine murmurs back to himself.

_“But he didn’t want that and you know it! Stop fooling yourself!”_

“Well now I know that…” Blaine says out loud in a soft voice.

 _“You need to talk to him!”_ The voice whispers again.

“Tomorrow…I’ll talk to him tomorrow and I’ll tell him the truth!” Blaine promises as he gets closer to Kurt and slowly falls asleep.

Rachel paces around Wesley’s trailer with her arms crossed. Wesley thought that after Rachel slept on the fight she would let it go and go back to her trailer with Santana. But when he walked in today and saw Rachel sitting in his trailer, he realized he was wrong, and that’s when he decided to talk to her.

After a half an hour, Wesley is sitting on the couch and Rachel is now pacing in front of him as he sits there with his elbows pressed to his knees and his hands clasped together. Just watching her make her laps and listening to her never ending rant.

“No, you don’t understand Wesley! I have known Santana for years and this is just how she works! She’s selfish and has to try to steal the spotlight every time something good happens for me! And she has the nerve to say that I’m selfish for making this about me?! Ha!” Rachel exclaims.

“Well, maybe she has a point?” Wesley speaks for the first time in minutes, quickly earning a glare from his girlfriend.

“What? No! See you don’t know Santana. I, however, have known her since before High School and she never does anything without wanting to see someone else cry!” Rachel yells.

Wesley shrugs his shoulders and rubs his hands together, “Yeah maybe, I mean I can see that, but maybe she’s changed? Like you said yourself, this isn’t High School anymore. Just last month you were saying how grateful you were to have her as a friend.” He reasons standing up from the couch and walking over to Rachel. Softly grabbing her by the shoulders to stop her pacing and forcing her to look at him. “Ever think that maybe she does these things to get your attention? That maybe she actually, in a way, looks up to you and just wants you to notice her? Maybe she isn’t trying to steal your spotlight, maybe she is just trying to get you to see that she’s just as good as you and wants to share your spotlight? And, just maybe, she’s been trying to show you that she’s not the same, _‘bitch’_ she was in High School.”

“No!” Rachel immediately says defensively. But after a second Wesley’s words sink in and she softens trailing off, ‘Well…Maybe.”

“You’re right. I don’t know her that well, but from what I can see, Santana has a unique way of dealing with her emotions. She seems to not want anyone to know she has any weaknesses. But she is human too Rachel. Maybe this is just her weird way of trying to show you that she cares and values your opinion even though we know she would never come right out and say that to you, in fear that it may make her seem weaker. She’s a tough girl. And she has a point. As her friend you should be happy for her. You know just as much as the next person how hard it is to make it in this business and this is really important for her career. You got your show and her show has nothing to do with yours, and in no way affects your career. So, maybe you could try to be happy for her and be a supportive friend who, from what I’ve heard, did the same to you when you were on Broadway and she covered for you. She may have an abrasive way of doing things, but maybe it’s coming from a deeper place within her that cares?” Wesley explains in a calm tone, trying to bring some sense into Rachel’s mind.

Rachel stands there looking down at the ground as Wesley’s words sink in. She drops her arms as the anger slowly starts to leave her body and she realizes that Wesley may have a point. Looking up to her boyfriend she shakes her head as she blinks back a few tears, “You’ve met her all of like what? Four times now and you got all that? I’ve spent years trying to figure that woman out.”  

“What can I say? I’m a smart guy…” Wesley says winking at his girlfriend.

Rachel can’t help but smile as a small chuckle escapes her lips at the blue-eyed man’s cuteness.

“Ahh, there’s my Rachel.” Wesley points out as he brings a hand up to run his thumb along the bottom lip of her smile.

He leans in a places a soft kiss to soft lips. When he steps back, he looks Rachel in the eyes. “I like it better when you smile, you’re so beautiful…How about this? Let’s take a break from all this crazy girl drama that we know you are going to work out with Santana because, whether you like to admit it or not, you’re each other’s best friends…You know besides me.” Wesley says earning him a playful eye roll and a small laugh as Rachel lightly pushes his chest causing him to playfully stumble backwards.

“…But how about if I take your mind off it for a bit.” He sends her a smirk as she quirks a questioning eyebrow in his direction. He turns and jogs back over to the couch, jumping up on the cushions he turns around and theatrically starts singing.

_(Wesley)…The trouble with schools is, they always try to teach the wrong lesson. Believe me, I’ve been kicked out of enough of them to know…_

He jumps off the couch and walks in a circle around Rachel acting his part and making the brunette to laugh out loudly.

_(Wesley)…They want you to become less callow, Less shallow. But I say: Why invite stress in?…_

Wesley stops in front of Rachel and leans into her as he sings and acts out his lines.

_(Wesley)…Stop studying strife. And learn to live “the unexamined life”…_

He throws his hands up in the air for dramatics as he sings and Rachel tries hard to suppress the laugh that’s threatening to come out any minute now.

_(Wesley)…Dancing through life. Skimming the surface, gliding where turf is smooth. Life’s more painless for the brainless. Why think too hard, when it’s so soothing?…_

He grabs the collar of his button up shirt and pops it out as he spins, dragging his feet across the carpet on the trailer floor.

_(Wesley)…Dancing through life. No need to tough it, when you can slough it off as I do…_

Wesley looks over his shoulder to Rachel, who hasn’t stop laughing since he started to act out the Broadway song. Grabbing her hand he heads towards the door, pulling her along with him.

_(Wesley)…Nothing matters, but knowing nothing matters. It’s just life. So keep dancing through…_

Ignoring Rachel’s questioning look, he just sends her a smirk. Letting a hand glide up her arms and fall to the small of her back, he pulls her waist to meet his hips and forcing her to sway with him.

_(Wesley)…Dancing through life. Swaying and sweeping, and always keeping cool. Life is fraught less, when you’re thoughtless. Those who don’t try, never look foolish…_

Taking a step back, Wesley grabs on to Rachel’s hand again and directs her down the paveway. He suddenly lets go of her hand and jumps up on a concrete block that has a flag pole cemented in the center. Grabbing onto the pole he spins around it while singing.

_(Wesley)…Dancing through life. Mindless and careless. Make sure you’re where less trouble in life. Woes are fleeting, blows are glancing, when you’re dancing through life…_

Rachel watches on, laughing at her boyfriend as he jumps down and runs back over to her leaning up against a black truck that is parked in the middle of two sets. Looking to Rachel, he squints his eyes from the sun and speaks his next line to her.

_(Wesley)…So–what’s the most swankified place in town?…_

Rachel smiles and pushes her hand off the same truck she was leaning on. Straightening her back she slips into character and speak her responds.

_(Rachel)…That would be the Ozdust Ballroom…_

Wesley grins back at her participation, knowing Rachel could never stay away from a _Wicked_ number. He reaches his hand out for hers again and without hesitation she sets her hand in his and willingly lets him pull her away from the truck they were standing in front of.

_(Wesley)…Sounds perfect! Lets go down to the Ozdust Ballroom. We’ll meet there later tonight. We can dance till it lights, find the prettiest girl, give her a whirl.._

The two stars sing and dance their way down the road lined with sets on each side as they act out the Broadway number.

_(Wesley)…Right on down to the Ozdust Ballroom. Come on, follow me. You’ll be happy to be there…_

Spotting a costume room off to the left, Wesley grabs Rachel’s hand before looking both ways to make sure no one was around as they sneak into the room.

_(Both)…Dancing through life. Down at the Ozdust…_

Inside the room there are thousands of costumes for numerous shows the network filmed. Looking around Wesley grabs a hat with a feather sticking out the side and places it on his head. He makes a funny face at Rachel as he sings the next line.

_(Wesley)…If only because dust is what we come to…_

Wesley makes his way over to Rachel. Taking her hand in his, he lifts it up causing her to twirl.

_(Both)…Nothing matters, but knowing nothing matters. It’s just life…_

As Rachel comes around full circle from her spin he pulls her in close to his chest and then pushes her out again slightly. Wesley brings Rachel’s hand up to his mouth as he places a chaste kiss to the back of her hand.

_(Wesley)…So keep dancing through…_

Wesley drops down to his knees and pulls a bowtie from the costume shelve, placing it around his neck, causing Rachel to laugh at his attempt at acting as the munchkin as he speaks the next lines.

_(Wesley speaks)…Miss Galinda- I hope you’ll save at least one dance for me. I’ll be right there, waiting, all night…_

Rachel fake blushes as she presses her hand to her heart and speaks Glinda’s next lines.

_(Rachel speaks)…Oh – that’s so kind. But you know what would be even kinder?…_

She bends down nudging Wesley as she starts to sing again, pointing to a fake person in the distance.

_(Rachel)…See that tragically beautiful girl, the one in the chair? It seems so unfair. We should go on a spree, and not she. Gee-! I know someone would be my hero, if that someone were, to go invite her…_

Wesley pretends to look at the girl in the distance and looking again at Rachel he speaks the next line.

_(Wesley speaks)…Well, maybe I could invite her!.._

Rachel fakes to be flattered; and making her flirt eyes she continues with the song.

_(Rachel)…Oh, Bick, really? You would do that for me?.._

Wesley, still in his knees making his best Boq impression continues.

_(Wesley)…I would do anything for you, Miss Galinda…_

The actor stands up and runs to the other side of Rachel. Rachel turns around to look up to him and says.

_(Rachel)…So…_

Wesley puts on a charming smile and playfully bows in front of Rachel before continuing with his lines.

_(Wesley)…So I’ll be picking you up around eight?…_

Rachel puts a finger to her chin faking a thought before wearing a huge smile looking to Wesley. Leaning into her boyfriend, Rachel places a hand on his chest.

_(Rachel)…After all-Now that we’ve met one another…_

Wesley holds onto Rachel’s hand as they look into each other’s eyes and swaying with her, they twirl together dramatically.

_(Both)…It’s clear we deserve each other…_

Rachel smiles widely as she turns in her boyfriend’s embrace. Sending him a wink she points to Wesley and says.

_(Rachel)…You’re perfect…_

Wesley shakes his head and pointing back at her, he says.

_(Wesley)…You’re perfect…_

They both laugh and continue acting out the song.

_(Both)…So we’re perfect together. Born to be forever, dancing through life…_

Rachel spins in front of Wesley and goes to sing the next line when one of the set’s crew members walks into the room and starts applauding, making them both to stop and look around. There’s more than one crew member in the room and apparently they saw the whole unrehearsed number.

Rachel sucks her lips in, trying to suppress a smile as she looks over to Wesley and notices he’s doing the same. Wesley grabs Rachel’s hand and playfully bows with her. When they stand back up they bust out in laughter as they fall to the floor laughing with each other at the silliness of what they just did.

For the second time this year, the Lincoln Center is buzzing with activity thanks to the New York’s Fashion Week. Kurt, as the Vogue.com director of this event, has a lot of work to do. In just a couple of minutes he’ll have to be interviewing very important fashion designers, coordinating the behind the scenes, watching all the fashion runways, and to top all that helping the Vogue.com models to be ready for their own show. This year they are going to present Isabelle’s newest collection and Kurt couldn’t be more nervous about it because some of his unique and very brilliant ideas are part of all the attires.

Kurt looks at all the people crowding the place and immediately his hands start to shake. “God, I’m gonna puke…” He murmurs to himself.

“Because you’re nervous, or because you look like you could keel over any second…?” Josh, one of the new interns Isabelle hired to help Kurt, asks.

Kurt turns around and giving the poor kid some killing eyes, he snaps, “Get out of my sight!” making the new intern to practically run before Kurt can fire him.

Usually Kurt is very nice with all the people who work for or with him, but today is not his best day. He has, literally, a rollercoaster of emotions that include a very evident health problem, an unresolved fight about their wedding with his fiance, and the imminent fear to lose his job if he doesn’t do the things as he’s supposed to do it.

“Are you alright?” Dwayne, one of the Vogue models, asks as he approaches Kurt.

Kurt turns around and looking at the tall and very handsome model he replies, “Oh, hi! Dwayne! Yeah I’m fine…Just a headache that’s been bothering me and a lot of work to do…” The blue-eyed man explains, faking a smile.

“I have some aspirin in my bag if you want…” Dwayne suggests with a huge smile on his handsome face.

“Really? Oh God! Yes please! I need to take something or I won’t make it till we end all this craziness…” Kurt sighs with relief. He was about to send Josh to get him some meds.

“Well, I can’t go all the way back to the tent, I need to be ready in two minutes. But my bag is there. Feel free to take the pills. It’s a black bag with red stripes. I believe I left it at one of the first chairs there…” The handsome model replies already walking away.

Kurt smiles and walks over to the Vogue.com tent and starts to look around. The place is a mess and there are at least 30 black bags. _‘Great! Now you just need to look for the one with red stripes…’_ He is thinking to himself ironically when a female voice breaks the silence.

“Kurt! There you are! I’ve been looking for you! We’re about to start! Are you ready?” Isabelle asks.

“Yeah, I’m ready…” He says sounding not so convinced.

“You don’t sound convinced…And you certainly don’t look fine. Are you sure you don’t want me to ask one of the interns to help you with the interviews?” She asks, showing her concern for his favorite employee.

“No!” Kurt immediately snaps. “I mean, I’m fine, don’t worry Isabelle. I just have a headache, but Dwayne has some aspirin, so I’ll take one and in less than five minutes I’ll be fine. I promise…” Kurt says raising his hand making the _‘scouts honor’_ sign.

“You know I don’t believe you, right? The headache can be part of you getting sick, but this is about Blaine too…” Isabelle says matter of factly. Kurt told her everything about last night’s fight in the morning when they arrived to the place.

“Obviously, but I don’t want to think about him right now, okay?” Kurt replies not really wanting to talk about him. Things were still not fine between them. Since last night they hadn’t talked and right now what he less wanted was to get into detail about his fiance and his lack of interest in the most important event of their lives. He doesn’t feel good and didn’t want to feel even worse by adding Blaine to the mix.

“Okay, then I’ll see you back there…hurry up, okay?” Isabelle says as she walks away.

“Yeah…” Kurt replies already looking around and finally spotting the black bag with red stripes. It’s not in the first chairs, but someone could have moved it. Kurt shrugs and walks over to the bag and opens it.

He rummages around the clothes and finds two pill bottles. He reads the labels and one says laxatives and the other diet pills. _‘No aspirin’_ He thinks while rolling his eyes. After all this time, he still can’t understand why the models are so obsessed with being skinny.

“Mr. Hummel?” Josh pokes through the door.

Kurt rolls his eyes and turns around. “Yes, Josh?”

“They’re waiting for you…” He says cautiously.

“I’m on my way…And Josh please get me some aspirin…My head is killing me!”

“Right away sir…” The young intern says, already running away to fulfill his new task.

Kurt walks away from the tent and heads to the next room to start to settle things up. He sends the writers to make some street interviews to all the guests and general audience. He sets the cameras to record, talks to the photographers and finally takes his notebook and iPad and  walks to see the first show, Marc Jacobs’s new collection. A personal favorite, if you asked him.

“Here we go.” He murmurs to himself as he enters the impressive room.

When the show is over Kurt walks back to the tent and immediately sits down. He’s about to pass out. _‘Where’s the damn aspirin!’_ He thinks to himself. He needs to be ready to make his interview with Mr. Marc Jacobs himself and although he’s nervous about it, he’s more concerned about his now very weak body. He knows he has fever and he’s trying really hard not to fall asleep, but he’s just really tired and shaking from chills.

He leans his head against the wall and closes his eyes feeling heavy eyelids. Without realizing, he falls asleep and last thing he knows, Josh is gently poking him.

“Mr. Hummel!” He whispers.

Kurt shifts uncomfortable. His eyes refusing to open.

“Mr. Hummel…It’s time to wake up” Josh repeats softly again.

“Huh?” Kurt opens his eyes confused. “Oh my god! I fell asleep!” He exclaims alarmed.

“Don’t worry sir, here’s your aspirin…” The intern says handing him two pills and a glass of water.

Kurt takes the pills and swallows them slowly feeling how they go all the way down his sore throat. “Thank you…”

“No problem sir…Mr. Jacobs is now waiting for you at the press room.”

“Thank you.” Kurt says, already standing up and getting into his professional self. He can feel sick and tired, but he was not willing to allow his personal and health problems to interfere with his work.

“Wish me luck.” Kurt says to the young intern as he slowly crosses the door of the press room.

Brittany and Santana walk out of Corner Bakery Cafe out on Westwood Blvd, L.A. Brittany has a pound cake wrapped up to-go in her left hand. She reaches into the packaging with her right hand and tears a piece of it off before popping it into her mouth. Santana has a blueberry hand pie in her right hand and a chai latte in her left hand with a piece of paper wedged between her pointer and middle finger. They step out onto the busy sidewalk and Brittany leads them both down the street as Santana continues to rant about her fight with Rachel the previous day. “I just don’t get it, B! Like seriously! What is wrong with her? She is so self centered trying to make this about her! It has nothing to do with her! This is a big deal for my career and she is just being downright selfish! No voy a seguir viviendo bajo su sombra. Voy a encontrar mi propio reflector. _(Translation: I will not continue living under her shadow anymore. I will find my own spotlight.)_ If she isn’t okay with that then obviously we aren’t friends!” She switches between English and Spanish expressing her rage. “–And I can’t believe her man hands actually touched my face! I had to scrub for like and extra thirty minutes last night!”

The blonde looks around with scrunches eyebrows as she stops walking, half listening to what the Latina is ranting about since she heard it all the night before. “San, I have no idea where we’re going. You have the paper?” Brittany interrupts.

Santana stops talking and looks to the paper she balances in her left hand along with her drink. “Oh right, sorry.” She apologizes realizing she got distracted from the task at hand. “Here…Can you hold this real quick?” She hands out her latte to her girlfriend who hums out a ‘ _mhmm’_ as she takes the drink so Santana can look over the list. The list is of addresses of buildings that they are looking as possible locations for Brittany’s new dance studio. “The building should be coming up on your right.” Santana points in the general direction of where they are heading.

Brittany nods and starts walking. “Babe, I can take my drink back.” Santana smiles to her girlfriend who takes a sip out of the Styrofoam cup before handing it back to her girlfriend with a wink.

“Ohh, here you gotta try this pound cake.” Brittany says enthusiastically, “By far the best one I’ve had.” The tall blonde tears off a corner and holds it up to the brunette’s lips.

The shorter woman opens her mouth and take the bite, humming in response. “Damn, B, that is good.” She licks her lips before saying, “Here, try mine.” She hold up her blueberry hand pie for Brittany to take a bite. Santana watches as Brittany takes a big bite of the pie. Laughing she playfully asks, “You sure you don’t just want the whole thing?”

Brittany laughs as she swipes her tongue along her bottom lip making sure she didn’t leave any blueberry stain behind. “Sorry, that was really good!” she laughs.

Santana’s eyes turn a shade darker as she stares at Brittany’s soft lips causing the blonde to blush slightly before she reluctantly looks forward again making sure she doesn’t run into anyone as they walk. Clearing her throat she breaks the silence trying to rid her face of the heat that was quickly spreading across her cheeks. “So…Rachel?”

Remembering what she was originally was ranting about, Santana sighs and with a slightly disappointed tone she says, “I just don’t understand, she always wants to say that she’s my friend, but she can’t even be happy for me now!”

Brittany side glances to Santana with a sympathetic look “I get that San, I really do.” She sympathizes for her girlfriend, but trying to see the situation from another point of view, being the kind person she is, she tries to reason with the brunette, “–But did you ever stop and think how Rachel feels. I mean in High School she always had to live under us because we were top of the social ladder being cheerleaders and now that she’s out of High School, she still has to compete with you and your amazing talent. I know you didn’t purposely audition for this show because it was in Rachel’s network, but in Rachel’s defense it does sound like something you’d used to do.”

Santana shrugs her shoulders looking down to the ground. Brittany had a point. There was a time that making Rachel life hell was a main hobby of hers, but she thought they had moved past that. And if she was going to be honest with herself, she may have been the popular girl in school, but she kind of felt like she was always in the shadow of Rachel’s spotlight.

Santana thinks it over for a second as she takes a sip of her latte, swallowing she says, “Yeah, I guess you have a point. It would suck always having to live under my amazing shadow.” She jokes.

The taller woman shoots her girlfriend a glance, knowing Santana doesn’t believe what she just said and reminding her who she was talking to. Santana slightly rolls her eyes because she knows she can’t hide from Brittany. “Fine. I guess I just thought we were actually becoming friends. That she actually saw me as an equal, and not the defensive bitch I pretended to be because I was hiding the fact that I have feelings.” Santana admits in a whisper. If it were anyone, but Brittany she would never be saying these things out loud. But Brittany, knows her…Who she really is.

Brittany says simply, “So, go talk to her, tell her what you just told me.”

The Latina winces as she says, “I don’t know, that’s like way too nice.”

The blonde laughs, “I know you know how to be nice, San,” She looks over to her girlfriend and seeing her still looking to the ground. Wanting to bring a smile to her lover’s face she says, “You were really nice last night when we took that bubble bath together.” winking at her.  

Looking up to blue eyes, Santana laughs and says.  “Yeah, well it’s always been easier around you…” She smiles at the blonde. “But I guess you’re right. I’ll go talk to her later. Thanks for always helping me shut Snix up and think clearly.”

“Anything for you, beautiful.” Brittany responds leaning over and quickly giving Santana a peck on the cheek.

The brunette finally looks forward again and reads the numbers on the building they were walking by “1043?” She looks down to the paper again, “Crap, we are looking for 1030 something. I think we passed it. I’m sorry I got side tracked.”

Brittany brings her hand up to shield her eyes from the sun as she looks over to Santana, with a smile she says, “It’s okay.”

Santana throws her empty cup away in the nearest trashcan on the sidewalk. Brittany then laces their fingers together and tugs on Santana’s hand as they head back in the direction they came from, looking at the building numbers as they pass them. “See it’s easy, I’m not the only one who gets sidetracked and lost.” Santana smiles lovingly to the blonde as she shakes her head in amusement.

Blaine is sitting on the ground outside one of the New York Fashion Week venues reading a book to try to kill some time. Models, reporters, and very neat people are walking around him as time seems to pass very, very slowly. He has been waiting outside the place for hours just waiting for Kurt to finish his work. He’s lost in his book when a joyful and sweet voice exclaims, “Blaine!?”

Blaine looks up from his book and sees Chad walking towards him. “What are you doing here?” He asks surprised.

“Waiting for Kurt. I was inside, but there’s a lot of chaos down there so I just left my stuff there and decided to wait here instead…” Blaine says. Quickly glancing to the set of endless tents where all the designers, magazines, and guests participating in the Fashion Week are usually settle.

“Does he know you’re here?” Chad asks, confused. How on earth the fiance of the Vogue.com director was sitting outside on the floor when he could be waiting inside at one of the private lounges.

“No, I couldn’t find him when I first arrived, I bumped into one of the new interns I think, but he just told me that he was very busy.”

“You should have told him who you were!” Chad says.

“Nah, I think it was better that way. I didn’t want to interfere. I’m just here to surprise him…” Blaine says smiling and showing Chad a bouquet of red and yellow roses he bought for his fiance.

“That’s sweet…” He says smiling. “…And we’re about to finish for today. In fact I think he’s done for the day, so maybe you can surprise him now. I saw him earlier and he doesn’t look fine. He’s all grumpy and congested. I’m sure those flowers are going to help to improve his mood.”  Chad  adds smiling friendly to the man seated in front of him.

 _‘Of course he’s not in a good mood…’_ Blaine thinks to himself immediately feeling guilty because he knows he is the reason why Kurt is grumpy. “Thanks Chad…I’ll go look for him then…” He flashes him a smile, thanking him him for his help, already standing up and grabbing the flowers.

Blaine enters the Vogue.com tent again and starts to look for Kurt, but he’s nowhere to be seen. He walks near a man standing there and when he’s about to ask him about his fiance, a female voice asks excited, “Blaine?”

Blaine turns around and sees Isabelle standing there with a huge grin on her face. She is wearing a silver dress with black lines that Blaine assumes is one of her designs. “Hi Isabelle! How are you? You look stunning!” He gushes while giving the blonde woman a quick hug and a sweet kiss on the cheek.

“Thank you, Blaine! But stop it, you’re making me blush!” Isabelle says trying to hide her blush. “I’m fine, and you? How are things going?” She asks smiling politely.

“I’m fine thanks and everything is fine. How was the show? Kurt told me you were going to present your own collection. I’m assuming that gorgeous dress is your creation…Am I right?”

“Yes, it is…Do you like it?” She asks making a quick twirl to show the dress.

“It’s beautiful!” Blaine compliments, smiling.

“Thank you…And the show was great! Everything turned out fine and I think we did great. Especially Kurt…You must be pretty proud of him” Isabelle rasps out.

”I am…You don’t know how much I am…” Blaine says unable to hide the excitement in his voice while talking about his fiance.

“I’m glad to hear that…I have to go, but can I ask you something?” The blonde woman stops before taking off.

“Of course…” Blaine nods.

“Take him home! He’s really sick, but you know him…Work always comes first. I told him he could go home as soon as he finished, but he didn’t listen and he’s still here doing who knows what…” Isabelle tells him, rolling her eyes at the memory of Kurt practically passing out but still trying to keep working.

Blaine laughs, because he knows Isabelle just described his fiance perfectly. Kurt is always putting work and responsibilities before everything, even his own health. “Don’t worry, I’ll take him home…Thanks…”

“This is a chaos, but walk over there and knock on room four…He must be there” Isabelle says giving him a wink. “And by the way…He’s going to love those…” She quickly glances at the flowers and walking away leaving Blaine trying to hide his now red cheeks.

After some seconds, Blaine shakes his head trying to get rid of the blushing and walks over to the door that says _‘room four’_ in big black letters. Taking a deep breath, he raises his hand and carefully knocks the door.

“Come in!” Kurt yells from inside the room. Blaine breathes deeply again and opens the door, very slowly poking through it. Clearly afraid of Kurt’s reaction, but his fiance is not looking at the door. He’s distracted facing the opposite side and seems to be organizing some stuff. Blaine clears his throat and whispers a quick, “Hi…” With a coyly voice.

Kurt immediately recognizes the voice and turns around surprised. A smile spreads across his face the moment he lays eyes on his fiance. Taking some time to think of what to say he asks, “What are you doing here?” trying to sound casual and hiding his excitement, because he just remembered they were still not on such good terms.

Blaine takes a deep breath before speaking and replies, “I came to see you…We need to talk and–”

“Blaine I…” Kurt trails off, not wanting to argue right now. It was not the place nor the time.

“Kurt, babe…Please…Just hear me out, okay?” Blaine says stepping into the room. Kurt sighs as Blaine continues, “I’m sorry about yesterday, and about pretty much the whole time we’ve been engaged. You have every reason to be mad at me because you’re right! I made a mistake and I shouldn’t have left the way I did yesterday. I’ve been acting like a fool and I’m very sorry! I just wanted this to be your dream wedding and I thought that by leaving you to make all the decisions I was doing the right thing and–” He trails off, trying to keep his emotions at bay.

“But that’s not what I want Blaine. I want this to be _our_ dream wedding, not just mine…” Kurt explains, looking at now teary hazel eyes.

“I know that and I’m really sorry, Kurt” Blaine says as a few tears roll down his face. “I didn’t mean to make you feel alone. It kills me to know you’ve been feeling like that all this time. I don’t even know what else to say, but that I’m really sorry…Do you think you can forgive me?” Blaine says handing him the flowers and trying to fight back the tears.

Kurt smiles sweetly and rolls his eyes at the adorable man in front of him, “Of course I can forgive you silly…” He grabs the flowers and stepping closer to hug his fiance whispers. “Just don’t do that again…We are a team, okay?”

“I know…I’m sorry…” Blaine replies stepping back and leaning over to try to kiss his fiance, but Kurt immediately cups his hands over his mouth and says. “I’m sick honey…I don’t want you to get sick too…”

Blaine rolls his eyes playfully and moves Kurt’s hand from his mouth. “I’m immune to your bacteria” He whispers and gently places a quick peck on his lover’s lips.

“I love you…” Kurt whispers.

“And I love you more…” Blaine replies, as a sudden coughing fit strikes Kurt again.  “That doesn’t sound good babe. Let’s get you home, you look like you feel awful.”

“No, I have to help clean up…” Kurt says shaking his head and turning around to start to pick up some stuff but Blaine stops him.

“Please, Kurt. You’re about to pass out. Let’s go home…” Blaine insists and just when Kurt is about to reply a new coughing fit strikes him and Kurt has to hold onto Blaine for some support because he starts to feel dizzy.

“See? Please babe, let’s go home…” Blaine says.

“I really need to help honey…” Kurt insists.

“No, you don’t! You’ve put enough time into this event. It’s about time someone takes care of you and that would be my job…In sickness and in health right?” And with that Kurt can no longer refuse, so he just nods.

“Why don’t you take a seat?” Blaine suggests helping his fiance to sit down in one of the chairs.

Kurt pouts and while taking a seat he murmurs, “I just need you to hug me…”

“I will…But first I’ll take you home.” Blaine says caressing Kurt’s face and noticing his fever. “Jesus, Kurt! You have fever. Let me get us a cab to go home, okay?”

“I need to go get my stuff. I left it at the main tent…” Kurt moans, trying to stand up, but Blaine immediately pushes him back to the seat.

“Don’t worry, I’ll go get it. My stuff is there too…” Blaine says and Kurt frowns confused. “Don’t look at me like that…I haven’t been home, okay? I went to rehearsal and then came here…”

“Why?” Kurt asks smiling because he already knows the answer. Blaine waited more than 12 hours outside for him and that was sweet.

“Because I wanted to talk to you. You left very early this morning and you didn’t even say goodbye” Blaine says still stroking Kurt’s face.

Kurt looks up and in self defense he replies, “I did say goodbye…I whispered to you that I was leaving, but you were knocked out”

Blaine smiles and looking into Kurt’s deep blue eyes, he replies, “…And you didn’t wake me because you were mad…Don’t worry I understand…Stay here…I’ll go get our stuff and a cab. Don’t you dare to move, okay?”

Kurt nods obeying directions, and leaning his head to the wall he closes his eyes and eventually falls asleep. The next time he opens his eyes, Blaine is carrying him bridal style. He starts to shake his head and with a weak voice he says, “Put me down…”

Blaine shakes his head and kissing Kurt’s forehead, “Stop complaining…You can barely move…Let me take care of you.”

Kurt rolls his eyes but nods settling himself into Blaine’s chest looking for warmth.

Blaine helps his fiance get into the car and Kurt leans his head again on Blaine’s chest feeling how this sudden sickness is slowly killing his energy.

“We’re on our way home babe…five more minutes and you’ll be in bed, okay?” Blaine whispers hugging Kurt tightly.

Kurt nods and closes his eyes, but in that moment he remembers that he left his laptop next to Isabelle’s bag and didn’t tell Blaine. “Honey, did you pick up my laptop?”

“Yes, don’t worry babe Isabelle and Chad helped me get all your stuff” Blaine replies sweetly tracing his hand up and down Kurt’s upper arm.

Kurt smiles and with his eyes still closed, he asks, “And my flowers…?”

Blaine laughs a little and while kissing Kurt’s head he whispers. “They are next to you”

Kurt murmurs, “Good.” As he falls asleep again.

When the boys arrive to the loft Blaine helps Kurt to get out of the car and climb up all the way to their home. Once inside he gives Kurt some meds and helps him get into his pajamas to later tuck him in bed. “Don’t go…” Kurt murmurs when he feels Blaine walking away from the bed.

“I’ll just go to get you some tea. I’ll be back in less than two minutes…” Blaine says smiling and walking to the kitchen to fetch his lover some tea.

When Blaine returns to the room he places the tea at the nightstand on Kurt’s side of the bed and immediately cuddles in bed with him. “Are you still awake?” He whispers.

“Uhu…” Kurt murmurs. Blaine smiles and hugs him tightly. Kurt still has fever so he’s shaking badly. Blaine whispers into his ear a sweet _‘I love you’,_ And Kurt just cuddles closer to Blaine’s chest. Blaine strokes his fiance’s hair until they both eventually fall asleep.

The tall blonde stands in the middle of a empty room. Scuffing her foot along the hardwood floors. Looking around the room she catches her reflection in the mirror that lines to the front of the room. She’s wearing a huge smile that stretches across her face as she rocks from her heels to the balls of her feet unable to contain her excitement. It was official. She’s now the owner of her own dance studio as of about 30 minutes ago.

Brittany walks closer to the mirror and runs her hands along the wooden bar along the shinny glass. Lost in her excitement, she doesn’t even hear the clicking sound of heels approaching her. It isn’t until the feel of familiar arms snake their way around her waist as Santana presses her front to Brittany’s backside. The blue-eyed woman looks into the mirror in front of her to see Santana looking into it as well. They both stare at each other for a moment with shy smiles, knowing how big of a step they just took to help launch Brittany’s dream career. Sure spending almost all their savings made Santana break a small sweat, but when she saw Brittany’s eyes light up when they walked into the third building they visited that day, she knew that this is what Brittany was meant to do and seeing that smile everyday, even if they were broke, was completely worth it.

The shorter woman ghost her lips along her lovers silky smooth skin of her neck and whispers as her breath hits the curve of her shoulders causing the blonde to shiver slightly. “How did I know I would find you in this room out of all eight dance studio rooms?” Brittany can feel the curve of Santana’s lips on her neck as the brunette smiles into the kiss she places to pale skin.

Smiling in return Brittany turns in Santana’s arms to face her lover. Wrapping her arms around Santana’s neck while the brunette traces soothing patterns along her sides. “I just can’t believe this is real.” Brittany’s eyes flicker from Santana’s lips back up to chocolate brown eyes, “Putting down the deposit on this place just, made everything so real. _Almost_ all our dreams are coming true, San.” Hearing the emphasis on the word _almost_ , Santana thinks for a second what could possible be missing.

Not wanting to dig into it any further right now, she decides not to ask. Holding her hand out, Santana asks, “Why don’t we test out these floors?” Sending her girlfriend a not-so-subtle wink. She waits for Brittany to place the palm of her hand on top of the hers. Smiling to the blonde and Santana can’t help but think of the perfect song and she starts to sing.

_(Santana)…When your legs don’t work like they used to before, and I can’t sweep you off of your feet…_

The lyrics come out in a raspy soulful way as Santana puts her own twist to the song. Slightly pushing Brittany’s hand away only to catch them again and spin her back in close to her body.

_(Santana)…Will your mouth still remember the taste of my love? Will your eyes still smile from your cheeks?…_

She takes a step back as Brittany follows. Not used to leading, Santana, barely noticeably, fumbles over her feeting. Brittany smiles at her softly as she grabs Santana’s hand and places their palms together. She then places Santana’s hand on her waist followed by her resting hers on a tanned exposed shoulder. Nodding for Santana to continue, Brittany smiles as she listens to her girlfriend’s beautiful singing voice as if the lyrics where nothing but the truth.

_(Santana)…And, darling, I will be loving you ’til we’re 70. And, baby, my heart could still fall as hard at 23…_

Santana takes a couple quick steps forward and Brittany takes the same ones backwards. Letting her hands run over the dancer’s firm but supple waist, Santana pulls Brittany flush against her as they sway their hips in sync with each other, never missing a beat.

_(Santana)…And I’m thinking ’bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways. Maybe just the touch of a hand…_

The shorter woman looks up into blue eyes as she continues to sing with passion. Gripping on to her lover’s waist as Brittany expertly spins around Santana’s arms only to be drawn back in. Brittany brings one leg up and wraps it around Santana’s lower calf as Santana dips the blonde backwards still holding on to her waist as Brittany rotates counterclockwise before coming back up and meeting Santana face to face, their lips only inches apart.

_(Santana)…Well, me—I fall in love with you every single day. And I just wanna tell you I am…_

Before Brittany can lean in for a kiss, Santana quickly turns her in her arms. With Brittany’s back pressed to her front, Santana runs a hand down her girlfriend’s abs landing to rest on her hips. Brittany brings a hand up, reaching back and cupping a tanned check. The two woman stare into each others eyes getting lost in the moment together.

_(Santana)…So honey now, Take me into your loving arms, kiss me under the light of a thousand stars. Place your head on my beating heart…_

Santana takes Brittany’s right hand into her left by reaching across her torso. She gently spins the blonde around bringing them back to face each other. The two lovers take a few steps to the left before Brittany does a half turn before elegantly falling backwards with her arms slightly raised above her head, only to be caught by her girlfriend’s strong arm.

_(Santana)…I’m thinking out loud. That maybe we found love right where we are…_

Santana lifts Brittany back up causing their chests to press together. She smoothly runs her hand up the inside of the taller woman’s arms before grasping on to her hand. Santana raises both of their arms and guiding Brittany as she turns on the ball of her right foot as her other leg lifts in an angle behind her.

_(Santana)…When my hair’s all but gone and my memory fades, and the crowds don’t remember my name, when my hands don’t play the strings the same way, I know you will still love me the same…_

The brunette is quickly caught off guard when Brittany stops spinning and runs her hands down her upper arms before dipping her back low to the ground.

_(Santana)…’Cause honey your soul could never grow old, it’s evergreen, and, baby, your smile’s forever in my mind and memory…_

Lifting Santana back up Brittany lets go of her girlfriend completely. The blonde runs to the other side of the room, pointing her toes with each step. Santana drops her arms and watches her girlfriend in awe as the dancer does a ariel landing lightly on her bare feet. The taller woman then raises her arms to the ceiling, letting her head fall back as she spins with one leg stretched straight up parallel with her torso.

_(Santana)…I’m thinking ’bout how people fall in love in mysterious ways. Maybe it’s all part of a plan.._

Brittany slowly brings her leg and arms back down. Looking back over to her girlfriend with a smile she runs and leaps into a well timed grand jete, landing softly on her feet on front of Santana.

_(Santana)…Well, I’ll just keep on making the same mistakes, hoping that you’ll understand…_

The shorter woman can’t help but shake her head at how amazingly talented her girlfriend is. They both reach out for the other at the same time, just wanting to feel their lover close. Santana bears down and soulfully forces the next verse out from the back of her throat with as much passion as she possessed putting all her love she held for the blonde into the notes she is singing.

_(Santana)…But, baby, now, take me into your loving arms. Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars. Place your head on my beating heart. Thinking out loud. That maybe we found love right where we are…_

With a strength Brittany didn’t know her girlfriend possessed Santana lifts Brittany up while spinning around the room. Their bodies press flush together as she slowly brings the blonde down and back to her feet, never taking her eyes away from sparking blue eyes.

_(Santana)…So, baby, now, take me into your loving arms. Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars. Oh, darling, place your head on my beating heart…_

Turning the tables again, Brittany flips Santana so her back is to her. Lifting the brunette by the palms of her hands, Santana lets her head fall back onto her lover’s shoulder as Brittany moves across the floor before setting her back down and wrapping her arms around the Latina’s waist.

_(Santana)…I’m thinking out loud. That maybe we found love right where we are. Oh, baby, we found love right where we are…_

Santana slides her hands over her girlfriend’s arms. Pushing her back slightly before bringing her back in only to duck under the blonde’s arms and causing them both to spin. Reaching out for Brittany’s hand she softly sings as she spins her girlfriend one last time to stand next to her as the both take a seat on the wooden floor. Pushing off with the heels of their feet they slide back a couple inches.

_(Santana)…And we found love right where we are…_

As Santana sings the last words of the song the two women lay back on their backs. Looking into each others eyes and with big smiles they erupt into laughter.

Kurt wakes up to an empty bed. He looks around, but Blaine is not there. He takes his phone from the nightstand and  looks at the clock. _‘10am!’_ He never sleeps so late. Getting up from bed, Kurt walks out the room and finds Blaine watching some reruns of Friends.

Blaine senses a pair of blue eyes looking at him and he immediately turns around and with a big smile plastered on his face, he exclaims, “Good morning babe!” As he turns off the T.V.

Kurt smiles sweetly at his fiance who is just walking towards him. “How are you feeling?” Blaine asks, as he quickly gives Kurt a sweet peck on the lips.

“Much better, though I’m hungry.” Kurt replies, grabbing his lean stomach.

“Well, breakfast is ready…Why don’t you take a seat? I prepared your favorites…Blueberry pancakes!” Blaine announces, proudly of his cooking abilities.

Kurt takes a seat at the kitchen table and can’t help but look with love to  the man he has in front of him. Blaine notices his fiance looking at him intently and asks, “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Because I love you…” Kurt states, as Blaine places his breakfast in front of him. “Oh, God! This smells delicious…” He melts looking at the pancakes.

“Hope you like them…” Blaine ponders while taking a seat next to him.

“Aren’t you eating?” Kurt asks taking a bite of his breakfast.

“I already ate…It’s a bit late.” Blaine replies.

“Yeah, I overslept…”

“You needed some rest…You want more tea?” Blaine asks noticing that Kurt’s cup is almost empty.

“Yes, please…”

Blaine stands up and while he’s fetching the tea Kurt says. “You know? I didn’t have the chance to say much yesterday because I was partially dead, but I’m glad that all the wedding stuff was just a silly misunderstanding. I really hate when we fight…”

Blaine places the tea in front of Kurt and smiles, “Me too…” As he gently kisses his fiance. “And I forgot to tell you that I actually gave my opinion in one of the tons of things Tara told me yesterday…”

“You did?” Kurt asks, taking a new bite of the delicious pancakes.

“Yeah, the stage is going to be at the far end, in front of the head table…” Blaine says smiling. AT least he didn’t do everything wrong.

“Oh! That’s perfect! I was thinking the exact same location! I’m so glad we’re always on the same page!” Kurt exclaims excited and grabbing his tea. “Could you pass me the honey, honey?” Kurt adds laughing at his own silliness. Blaine passes him the honey and while Kurt is sweetening his tea, he adds, “I swear this lemon teas you prepare are like magic!”

“Really?” Blaine perks up with a sweet smile spreading across his face.

“Yeah, just listen to my voice it sounds much better, right?” Blaine agrees and Kurt continues, “I think I could even sing…”

Blaine stands up and taking the dirty dishes to the sink, “Well, we can’t sing right now…”

Kurt frowns confused. He’s really curious to know why his fiance is suddenly rejecting a chance to perform. “Why?”

Walking to the room Blaine emerges with Kurt’s wedding planning scrapbook. With a huge smile he tells his lover, “Well, because we have a wedding to plan…”

Immediately, a huge grin appears on Kurt’s lips and standing up from the table he starts to sing.

_(Kurt)…Dear future husband here’s a few things. You’ll need to know if you wanna be, my one and only all my life…_

Blaine laughs the moment he catches the song and gives his fiance a sweet wink. Kurt grabs the scrapbook from Blaine’s hands and places it at the kitchen table as he snaps his fingers following the beat of the song.

_(Kurt)…Take me on a date. I deserve a break and don’t forget the flowers every anniversary. ‘Cause if you’ll treat me right I’ll be the perfect guy. Buying groceries, buy-buying what you need…_

Kurt starts to dance around the apartment while he keeps singing. Looking around he spots the flowers Blaine gave him last night. Kurt runs and picks a single red rose from the vase and hands it to Blaine who just smiles sweetly and blows him a kiss.

_(Kurt)…You got that 9 to 5, but, baby, so do I. So don’t be thinking I’ll be home and baking apple pies. I never learned to cook, but I can find a hook. Sing along with me, sing-sing along with me (hey)…_

Kurt grabs the spatula Blaine used to prepared breakfast and uses it as a microphone, making Blaine burst into laughter, because his fiance’s great mood is infectious. When Kurt realizes he’s littering the floor with pancake mix that’s dropping from the spatula he tosses it back to the sink. Turning back around as he continues to sing.

_(Kurt)…You gotta know how to treat me like your baby. Even when I’m acting crazy. Tell me everything’s alright…_

The singing man walks the few steps that separate him from Blaine and grabbing the hazel-eyed man’s hands he starts to dance with him. Blaine looks into deep blue eyes and for some reason he just can’t stop laughing.

_(Kurt)…Dear future husband here’s a few things you’ll need to know if you want to be my one and only all my life. Dear future husband if you wanna get that special lovin’ tell me I’m beautiful each and every night…_

Blaine sits by the kitchen table and opens the scrapbook and starts reading it as he shows Kurt new stuff he’s finding on the internet. Kurt looks at the new suggestion Blaine is giving and makes a disgusting face. Blaine laughs and shows a new one. This time Kurt gives his fiance the thumbs up as he twirls and keeps singing.

_(Kurt)…After every fight, just apologize. And maybe then I’ll let you try and rock my body right. Even if I was wrong, you know I’m never wrong. Why disagree? Why, why disagree?…_

Kurt goes to the room while he keeps singing and brings the entire wedding box and starts to take out magazines, fabric swatches, and a lot of stuff that Blaine doesn’t know what they are. Kurt passes some pages from a magazine and points some stuff to Blaine who just nods and points to a new one. Kurt thinks about it for two seconds and then nods in agreement.

_(Kurt)…You gotta know how to treat me like your baby. Even when I’m acting crazy. Tell me everything’s alright…_

After a few more nods and disapproving looks Kurt comes closer to Blaine and closes the scrapbook. Blaine looks up surprised and Kurt grabbing his fiance’s hand makes him stand up and dance again with him.

_(Kurt)…Dear future husband here’s a few things you’ll need to know if you want to be my one and only all my life (hey, baby). Dear future husband make time for me. Don’t leave me lonely and know we’ll never see your family more than mine…_

Blaine dances for a while, but then decides to step back a bit to just enjoy watching his fiance perform. Kurt seems to be extremely happy and Blaine can’t keep his eyes off of him.

_(Kurt)…I’ll be sleeping on the left side of the bed (hey). Open doors for me and you may get some kisses. Don’t have a dirty mind just be a classy guy. Buy me a ring, buy-buy me a ring, babe…_

Kurt notices that Blaine is no longer dancing so he rolls his eyes and pouts at him. Blaine shrugs and encourages him to continue. Kurt smiles and while singing the next lines of the song he points to the ring Blaine gave him and shakes his left hand like he did in his _‘Single Ladies’_ performance, causing Blaine to burst into laughter again.

_(Kurt)…You gotta know how to treat me like your baby. Even when I’m acting crazy. Tell me everything’s alright…_

For Kurt this song is a way to show he feels better and to release some of the stress he has been living in recent weeks with school, job, and his concern about Blaine’s apparently lack of interest about their wedding.

_(Kurt)…Dear future husband here’s a few things you’ll need to know if you want to be my one and only all my life. Dear future husband if you wanna get that special loving tell me I’m beautiful each and every night…_

Blaine looks at his soon to be and can’t hide his heart eyes so he takes a piece of paper from one of the notebooks he has in front of him and writes, _‘You’re beautiful’_ then shows it to Kurt when he sings that part of the song. Kurt just smiles and grabs the paper as he finishes the song.

_(Kurt)…Future husband, better love me right…_

When the song comes to an end Blaine leans over and kisses the blue-eyed man. Kurt kisses him back and when they split Blaine murmurs with a playful laugh, “Noted…” And Kurt can’t help but laugh too.

“Let’s go the the room” Kurt says.

Blaine’s eyes open wide and he begins stuttering, “but-but the wedding…”

“We’ll do that later!” Kurt says unable to hide his anticipation.

Blaine blushes a little. “You definitely feel better, huh?”

“Oh yes I do!” Kurt replies as he practically pulls Blaine to the room.

When Santana walks into her trailer, she is surprised to find Rachel already inside putting back all the things she had taken after the fight. The atmosphere is tense between them. Santana stands in the middle of the room, wanting to say something to the other brunette, but every time she opens her mouth nothing comes out. Eventually rolling her eyes at herself, she decides on giving up and walks to her side of the room, taking a seat in front of her mirror.

The tension between the two women hung thickly in the air. Both looking in the reflection of their mirror to see the other looking up doing the same, before quickly looking away, neither knowing how to start or what to say. Rachel chances a glance back up to her mirror. She can see Santana still looking towards her through her mirror. She carefully reaches an arm up, following Santana’s eyes and making sure the Latina was watching her movements, she grabs the photo of them from her mirror. Playing with the corner of the picture, she looks it over before glancing back to Santana seeing the shy smile tugging at her lips.

Santana watches as Rachel flips the picture over in her hands reading what she wrote on the back of it before taping it to Rachel’s mirror the previous day. She watches the other brunette shake her head with a smile as she reads the words, _‘I’m sorry’._

Rachel turns to Santana and breaking their silence she says, “Why are you apologizing? I should be the one apologizing. And I am. I’m sorry Santana, I shouldn’t have slapped you. That was uncalled for and there is no excuse for that.”

Finally turning in her chair to face Rachel head on. She gives her a short head nod, letting her friend know she accepts her apology. “Thank you. And I accept your apology for slapping me. But I see you’re not apologizing for accusing me of trying to sabotage your career?”

“I don’t see why I would apologize for that when you haven’t really proved to me otherwise.” Rachel says crossing her arms getting defensive.

“Seriously? I haven’t given you any reason to believe I would do that! I thought we cleared the air after I stepped down from being your understudy Rachel!” Santana raises her voice a bit.

“Yeah, I thought so too, but now this? Why here, Santana? You had so many other options, why did it have to be where I was working?” By this point both women are standing only a few feet from the other.

“Because I didn’t have any other options!” Santana yells out as she drops her arms in defeat.

Rachel immediately lowers her arms as she scrunches her brows in confusion, “What? but you said you had–”

“I know what I said…” Santana cast her eyes down to the floor in embarrassment, “I lied, okay? I didn’t have any other auditions. This was my only option.”

Taking a step closer to the Latina, Rachel reaches a hand out to sooth the brunette and says, “Santana I–”

“Don’t.” Santana says sternly as she takes a step back. “I don’t want your pity.”

Rachel lets the new information sink in for a second before looking up to Santana, “Does, does Brittany know? Because when we had lunch at your house she said not to worry because you had other options if this didn’t work out.”

Letting her eyes shift between the other woman’s eyes as Santana runs her bottom lips between her teeth. With a sigh she confesses, “She didn’t…But she does now….I felt bad for hiding it from her so I told her last night because she kinda asked the same thing as you, why did I choose here instead of somewhere else…” She trails off.

“But, why did you lie, Santana?” Rachel shuffles over to their shared couch. Sitting down and leaving enough space for Santana to sit, she pats the empty spot behind her. Santana runs her hands through her hair before giving in and taking a seat next to Rachel.

“A couple different reasons I guess…” Santana trails off thinking about how she was going to explain this to her friend. “Ultimately it started out as a little white lie. I wanted to seem like I had it all together. I thought that once I got to L.A. the auditions would come flying in. But they didn’t. By then I had already told Britt that I had more options. I wanted to make this move easier for her because she was still searching for what it was that she wanted to do. I wanted her to take the time to figure out what her dream was and I thought that if she knew I could take care of her, she’d have nothing to worry about.” She looks up to the ceiling as she lets out a slow breath trying to key her tears from betraying her. She smile a sad smile while looking back to Rachel, “I was so afraid of failing her…” By now the Latina’s brown eyes glossed over with tears threatening to spill over the edge and down her cheeks. She looks away quickly trying to hide her face, not wanting Rachel to see her cry.

Rachel scoots a couple inches closer. Placing a hand on top of the other women’s, Rachel feels Santana flinch for a second thinking about retreating her hand before relaxing and accepting the comfort. “Santana, even if you didn’t get this job…” She pauses, tugging on Santana’s hand forcing her to make eye contact. “You wouldn’t have failed Brittany. She loves you and she won’t care if you’re an actress or a garbage woman. She wouldn’t care if you guys lived in a mansion or a cardboard box.”

Hearing Rachel’s last statement Santana can’t help but laugh. Wiping her tears with her sleeve she smiles a watery smile, “Britt said the same thing when we were on our way to L.A.”

“Hmm.” Rachel pretends to think for a second, “Well, then I’m right.” She laughs as she nudges Santana in the ribs with her elbow causing the Latina to laugh along with her.

As their laughter starts to die down Rachel remembers Santana said there was a couple reasons she had lied about how many auditions she had. “Wait, so what was the other reason you lied?” she asks.

Santana squints her eyes at Rachel as she tilts her head to the left, “You still don’t get it, do you?” Shaking her head, ‘ _No’,_ Rachel waits for Santana to continue. “You’re gonna make me say it out loud aren’t you?” Santana tries to stop herself from rolling her eyes but fails miserably. Letting out an exaggerated sigh she starts to explain. “Because I care about your opinion, Rachel.” She looks up from her hands to Rachel’s eyes trying to sense the other woman’s reaction. Rachel stares at her with scrunched brows showing she still doesn’t understand. “I work so hard to be half as good as you and it seems you never notice. All you see in me is the _‘Bitch’_ from high school.” Santana shakes her head as she looks down to her feet that were hanging of the couch landing on the soft carpeting of their trailer floor. “I don’t choose to work near you because I want to ruin your career, Rachel. I just want you to notice me for something better than being a bitch.”

“Santana…I-I don’t know what to say. I’m flattered that you value my opinion and of course I know there’s more to you than that. Trust me Santana, I notice you. You’re not only half as good as me, you may even be better.” Rachel whispers. “I guess the reason I assume the worst in you…Is because I feel threatened because you’re that good.” She pauses for a second before adding, “But, you’re right. I jump to conclusions because part of me does still see you as that head bitch from McKinley.” She lets a light laugh escape her lips. “You just have a way of making yourself take charge of any room you’re in. I envy and loathe you for that.” she sends Santana a quick smile letting her know she doesn’t mean her comment in a negative way.

“Yeah, I guess I do have an unconventional way of going about things.” Santana laughs.

Rachel laughs and nods her head agreeing with her. She then softens as she looks up to Santana through her lashes, “It’s just, in high school you were the popular cheerleader. Everyone wanted to be you Santana. You were hot, and popular, and all the guys fawned after you. I felt like I was always in your shadow.”

Shaking her head, Santana creased her forehead. “What? So what? I was popular, but I was popular because I put out for a bunch of guys because I was hiding that I was in love with Brittany. What is there to envy about that? In all honesty….I always felt like I was in the shadow of your spotlight. You got all the solos in Glee Club and everyone just adored you. It made me envy and hate you. You went from being on the bottom to the top. So I took a page from your book. Thought I could do the same. But it made me have  respect for you because it’s not easy.”

Rachel had to laugh, “No, it’s not.” She looks over to Santana and lets out a sigh, “So we both love and hate each other?”

“Yeah pretty much.” Santana chest bobs up and down as she laughs.

“So, are we okay?”

“Yeah, we’re good.” Santana smiles over to her friend. “But don’t think I didn’t notice you called me hot. Sorry Berry, I’m taken” She winks to Rachel as Rachel’s face pales.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever Santana.” Both women let out a light chuckle.

“You know…I’m really glad we’re not fighting anymore. I kinda need my best friend for something.”

Concerned Rachel looks around the room before landing back to Santana, “With what?” She asks warily.

“So we finally found a place for Britt’s dance studio.” She smiles at the memory they made there.

“Oh my gosh! That’s great! We need to celebrate!” Rachel exclaims excited.

Santana smiles because she knows that’s the truth, “Yeah, we do, but that’s not what I wanted to talk to you about. When we were standing in one of the dance studio rooms Brittany mentions that ‘ _almost’_ all her dreams were coming true. So I started thinking. What could be missing?…That’s when I realized what we’re both are missing…” Meeting Rachel’s eyes she says, “I need your help because…I’m going to ask Brittany to marry me.” Rachel’s jaw drops and her eyes go wide and with a smile she squeals in excitement for her friends.


	7. Ebb and Flow

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on the Glee Fan Project..NYFW arrived and Kurt’s life turned upside down. He got sick, and with all the work he forgot the appointment he had set to check some wedding details. He asked Blaine to go and though he agreed, he didn’t show interest and that really pissed Kurt. They fought about it and both said some hurtful stuff. Ouch! Rachel and Santana got tired of each other after weeks of sharing the same trailer. Rachel slapped Santana and then moved into Wes’s trailer. Yikes! Britt and Wes tried to bring some sense into their girlfriends by sharing their insights about each other, but the girls were too mad to listen and the drama continued for days. Come on! Blaine showed up at the NYFW and apologized to Kurt. They made up and Blaine took Kurt home and nursed him all night. Aww! Brittany found the place for her dance studio and Santana serenaded her as they did a beautiful dancing routine. Top that Ed! After all the drama Kurt and Blaine finally started to plan their wedding together, Santana and Rachel talked and got to the bottom of their issues, and just when things couldn’t be better Santana surprised us all with a shocking idea. Is she really proposing to Britt?...and that’s what you missed on Glee!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the seventh episode! We're very happy to announce that this is officially our mid season episode! This has been such a journey and we're very happy to be sharing this story with all of you! This episode has some angst (not a lot), but we will finally be able to understand a lot of things about one of the characters, plus we have a very sweet surprise for some of you. Anyways, as usual at the top of the episode you'll find a link to the intro video and the Episode 7 playlist of songs in case we have included a song that you may not have heard of. Remember that we wrote the characters singing these songs with their own vocal arrangements in mind that’s why some of these songs are covers and some are the originals. We hope you enjoy them!

Intro video

[Episode 7 playlist](http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv_rvGfxbXKNIpBz6WoWJxAusS9FAItS5%20)

Blaine is writing frantically on his laptop. He’s typing a very important email when a chat window pops open and the picture of his brother, Cooper Anderson, flashes through the screen. He sighs, ignores the conversation and keeps typing the email. Just when he’s about to click send, Kurt emerges from the room with a huge grin on his face.

“Guess what!?” Kurt exclaims. “I have great news!”

Blaine, looks up from the screen, before asking out of curiosity, “What is it?”

“Isabelle just called and I don’t have to go to the office today!” Kurt exclaims clapping his hands in excitement.

“That’s great! Now you’ll have some time to actually have some rest!”

 “Do you have any plans for today?” Kurt asks, walking towards the table.

“Why?” Blaine frowns and clicks the send button.

Kurt takes a seat next to his fiance and rests his head on his shoulder. “Well…Since I’m free for the day I thought that maybe we could do something together…” He says, and raising his head, he looks into hazel eyes and adds. “…If you don’t have any other plans of course…”

Hesitating and looking into big blue eyes Blaine replies, “Well…I wanted to go to the gym, but we can do other stuff if you want to. Maybe we can go and see some Broadway show? You know I love spending time with you…”

Kurt shakes his head and smiles. “No, the gym actually sounds great! It’s been a while since I had a proper workout session. With school, the wedding planning stuff, and Vogue, I’ve limited myself to exercise using our _‘Bob Harper’s Inside Out’_ set of DVDs…It’s good for a little change to actually go to the gym…”

Trying to hide that he would rather go to the Broadway show than the gym, Blaine just smiles and flashes a hint of concern through his eyes. Kurt, completely oblivious to his fiance’s reaction and distracted by the laptop, continues, “Anyways…What were you doing?”

Still thinking about the gym plan, Blaine starts to stutter as he replies. “I-I-I was just-just sending the last minute requests we talked about the other day for our bachelor’s party…”

“Awesome! I’m glad you did. I completely forgot about that…By the way, I already received the invitations we ordered, but I think we need to wait to send them to our friends, don’t you think? It’s a little too soon…”

“Yeah, yeah…” Blaine replies, getting suddenly distracted by the flashing icon with Cooper’s face popping on the screen again.

“Is that Coop?” Kurt asks excited when he notices his soon to be brother in law picture on the screen.

“Yeah…I’ve been ignoring him. I wanted to send the email first…” Blaine says smiling and opening the chat window.

Kurt leans over and reads the so far one sided conversation. “Is he seriously not attending the Bachelor’s party?” Kurt asks surprised.

“That’s what he says. I hope he’s just joking, you know he’s like that…Let’s ask him again…” Blaine tries while quickly typing a response. When Blaine clicks the send button Kurt tells him in a defeated tone, “Too late honey…He’s offline now…”

Blaine rolls his eyes and huffs, because that’s so Cooper. When you don’t pay the attention he wants, he disappears. Kurt laughs and stands up from the table,  “I guess we’ll have to ask him later…I’ll go take a shower, you wanna join?”

“Yeah…I’ll be there in a minute.” Blaine replies still slightly annoyed.

Kurt gives his fiance a quick peck on the lips and whispers, “Don’t take long okay?…We have a busy day ahead of us at gym…” He teases, as he walks to the bathroom and closes the door behind him.  

With the reminder about their plans for the day, Blaine exhales worried as he looks at the bathroom door with that hint of concern flashing through his eyes again.

Walking into her shared trailer, Rachel notices Santana standing off to the side of the room. Moving in farther, she sees the Latina dropping the black dress, she had just pull over her head, to the floor. “Oh, sorry, didn’t know you were changing.” Rachel brings her right hand up to shield her eyes from Santana’s direction as she looks at the floor while walking to her side of the trailer.

Santana stands in only a pair of grey bikini style underwear and a matching grey wired bra. Looking over her shoulder she see’s Rachel flop down on the couch leaning her head back to fall on the back of the couch cushions. “Sure, Berry. You just wanna get a look at my goods.” Santana teases. “How did shooting go?” She asks as she slides a pair of hip huger blue jeans with rips down the front over firm tanned thighs and pulling them up around her waist fastening the button.

“It was good, although we had to re-shoot the elevator scene like five times. The director kept saying Liv looked like she had a five o’clock shadow in the lighting.” Rachel tried to hide her laughter behind the back of her hand.

Laughing along with Rachel, Santana speaks as she slips into a flowing red and white shirt, pulling it over her chest and covering her tight abs. “Umm, I’ve met Liv and it probably wasn’t the lighting. She has a five o’clock shadow.”

“Yeah, poor girl not even the make-up artist can help her.”

Finished changing into her wardrobe for her next scene, Santana takes a seat on the couch next to Rachel. Picking up a copy of her script from the table that sits in front of the couch, she busies herself with reading over her script ignoring the glances coming from the actress sitting next to her.

Rachel looks over to Santana for about the fifteenth time before Santana finally speaks up, “Okay, what is it Berry? Why you keep staring at me? Either you want something, or you’re trying to picture me in my underwear again…” She sends Rachel a smirk.

Rolling her eyes and sitting up on the couch, Rachel says, “Santana, come on! You know why I’m looking at you.” Santana stands up from the couch and walks over to sit in front of her mirror, picking up her phone scrolling through her texts trying to look busy while ignoring Rachel’s prying eyes. “Come on, I’m dying here! You said you wanted my help, but you haven’t really talked much about it since you told me you were gonna propose. Are you having second thoughts?”

“What, no! Of course not! I love Brittany, and I want to marry her, I have no doubts about that.” Santana turns around in her seat to face Rachel, “I have a few ideas about how I was thinking of doing it, I just haven’t gotten the chance to talk to you about it yet because I don’t want Brittany to suspect anything. I really want to do this right and I want it to be a surprise.”

Rachel softens after hearing the nervous quiver in Santana’s voice. “Santana, you know I would never say anything to her. Your secret is safe with me. Now, tell me about these ideas you have. I’m here to help in any way that I can. I am just so excited for you two!”

Rolling her eyes Santana says, “Calm your tits, Gollum, she has to say yes first.”

“She’d be crazy not to. You guys are perfect for each other.” Rachel catches Santana’s eyes seeing the hope behind them.

With her heart beating in her chest, Santana swallows thickly before taking a deep breath, “Thanks, Rachel.”

Rachel smiles at the use of her real name and not one of Santana’s many nicknames for her. Patting the seat next to her, Rachel silently asks for Santana to join her back on the couch. Smiling, Santana stands up and for the second time today she sits down next to her long time friend. “Okay, so let’s hear these ideas Santana!”

“Okay, okay. So, I could go all cliche and take her out to a fancy restaurant, candle lit dinner, and the ring in the bottom of the champagne glass.”

Thinking it over for a second, Rachel pulls her lip from between her teeth while looking out into the distance. Shaking her head she responds, “Mmmh, No you’re right. It’s too cliche and overdone. Romantic, yes, but I think you can do something…I don’t know more Brittany-esc.”

“Right, that’s exactly what I was thinking. Or I can go the totally opposite and make it more…I don’t know, personal? Could be just her and I, sitting at home, watching a movie together. When the pizza man comes and she opens the box having _‘Will You Marry Me?’_ ” written on the inside of the box?” Santana shrugs her shoulders as she speaks.

Rachel immediately shakes her head, “No, that’s not making it a big enough deal. On a pizza box? Really, Santana? You want to tell the woman you love you want to spend the rest of your life with her on a grease filled pizza box?”

“You’re right. It’s not big enough. Brittany deserves something big and something that means something to us. We’ve been through so much and this is my way of telling her that we made it through all the bad stuff, all the hard stuff and now we can start a life together and take on the challenges together. Just how do I say that is the question.” Santana sits in silence for a second thinking. She had to get this right, Brittany deserved the best. Taking a quick glance at her phone she notices the time. “Shit, I’m going to be late.” She stands up and runs her sweaty palms over her jean clad thighs. Taking a deep breath she looks back to Rachel who still seems to be in thought as well, “Um, maybe we can meet up after work, or something and continue this conversation? I have to get to set.”

Rachel shakes her head to rid herself from her thoughts, “Yeah, Santana, of course. Just text or call me and we’ll get together. And I will keep thinking of ideas for you, but you know Brittany the best, so you keep thinking too.”

“Yeah. Thanks, Berry. I’ll see you later.” With that said Santana exits the trailer through the front door.

Rachel swings her legs on to the couch to lay flat. Putting her forearm over her eyes she lays there thinking of way to help her friend pop the most important question of her life. _‘Think Brittany.’_ She says to herself. As she lays there thinking she can hear the ticking of a clock in the background.

After listening to the clock tick so many times, she is sure she had been laying there for over an hour. Opening her eyes she realizes she still had no ideas to help Santana. _‘Who would know Brittany almost as well as Santana?’_ She thinks to herself and that’s when it clicks in her head and the dots connect. _‘Of course! They didn’t call them the unholy trinity for nothing!’_ She quickly sits up and grabs her phone from her back pocket. Dialing the familiar number, she brings the receiver to her ear and she listens to it ring in the background.

She hears the other side pick up. There’s a slight pause before she hears a _“Hello?”_ filter through the speaker. “Quinn? Hi! I need a favor!”

William Schuester sits on the couch in his living room, waiting for his wife to finish getting ready when he suddenly remembers he doesn’t take out the tickets for the annual teacher’s Carmel High Gala from the fancy invitation he received over a month ago. Walking through a door that sits on the left side of the hallway, he enters into his small study. He searches through the stack of music sheets that are perched on top of his desk. Finally, spotting the thick cream colored envelope embroidered with his name in gold print, he takes the invitation, pulling out the two tickets before safely putting them in the inside pocket of his suit jacket.

“Emm, are you almost ready?” He yells as he rounds the corner of the hallway after exiting his study.

“Not yet!” Emma’s yell is muffled, coming from behind the white closed door of their room.

 Will quickly looks at his clock and realizes that they still have plenty of time. “Take your time…We’re still on time!” He yells back while poking his head through a small opening in their bedroom’s door with his hand still resting on the door knob.

Emma smiles at her husband and with her sweet soft voice replies, “Okay…Just give me ten minutes, okay?”

Will smiles, “Okay..No problem.” He looks his wife over, taking in her outfit of choice. He watches for a second as she pins up her red hair with a hair clip adorned with small pearls on its ends. Letting his eyes cast down, his smile widens as he appreciates his wife’s beauty in a simple, yet elegant light green dress that hugs her waist before flowing out and sweeping to the floor. “–and by the way, you look beautiful” He tells her as a second thought, winking at his wife.

Emma blushes and just shakes her head as William slips back out the bedroom door, closing it behind him before walking back to the living room to patiently wait for his wife to be ready and Mercedes to arrive to take care of Daniel.

After some minutes, the doorbell rings and Will immediately stands up yelling over his shoulder, “I’ll get it! That must be Mercedes!”

Emma, who was just making her way to the living room as she puts in a pair of simple diamond stud earrings and not hearing what her husband just said, “That must be Sam…”

They both stop their movements when they hear their significant other’s words. Realizing what just happened, they both exclaim, “What!?” at the same time while looking at each other waiting for an explanation.

“Did you call Mercedes?” Emma asks surprised.

Will nods getting confused. “Yeah…I-I thought you’d asked me to find someone to take care of Dan tonight…” He explains.

“Yeah, I did, but that was last week and since you didn’t say anything about it, I assumed you’d forgotten and I…And I called Sam…” Emma waves her hands trying to keep herself from panicking.

“Oh my God, I’m sorry Emm! I should have told you that I had called Mercedes since last week!” He quickly apologizes. “…And now, what are we going to do?”

Emma lets out a long sigh because she really doesn’t know what they are going to do. She looks at her husband with a concerned look. “You do realize they are going to think we did this on purpose, right? Sam trusted me and told me all about his story with Mercedes!” Emma worries.

“I know Emm, and you know Mercedes did the same about him with me…” Will says running his hand through his curly hair while debating what to do.

“This is a disaster Will…We need to do something!” Emma says her voice taking on a higher octave as worry becomes evident in her voice.

Will thinks about it for a minute and trying to calm his concerned wife, he runs both his hands over his face before sighing in defeat and saying, “Well, there’s no much we can do right now. I mean, they’re already here so maybe this isn’t a bad idea after all.” He pauses for only a second. Moving closer to his wife he takes her delicate hands in his, “Think about it. We both know what’s going on between them, so maybe this is good right? They’ll have some time alone to talk and one thing can lead to the other and maybe they’ll finally have a proper talk?” He asks with a raised brow.

Emma lets the new perspective of the situation sink in for a minute, before chuckling. “Well…You have a point. We didn’t plan this, but certainly fate had something to do with it, yeah…Maybe this isn’t such a bad idea after all…” She breathes, feeling more calm.

 Will nods and taking a deep breath he makes his way to the front door after hearing another knock. Emma gives her husband an encouraging look as he nervously grabs the doorknob and opens the door. Will looks at Sam and Mercedes who are standing there looking back and forth between each other and their former teacher and counselor, clearly confused.

“Mercedes! Sam! Thanks for coming!” He exclaims excitedly, clapping his hands together before rubbing them together, feeling the need to do something with his hands in the awkward situation.

Emma, noticing the even more confused faces on the two star-crossed lovers quickly adds with a nervous laugh, “I swear we didn’t do this on purpose…It was a mere coincidence!”

Sam and Mercedes smile uncomfortably and Will, trying to kill the awkwardness, exclaims “But please, come in!”

Sam and Mercedes slowly walk into the house. Emma trails slowly behind them and into the living room, wearing her usual wide smile. “Lack of communication is a problem in any relationship.” She says, as an explanation for the sudden babysitting unplanned date.

Mercedes smiles slightly and Sam just gives a small nod. For some unknown reason they haven’t said a word since they arrived. The situation was awkward enough for them to add mumbling or stuttering into the mix.

“Anyways…Let me show you around. The place has changed a bit since the last time you two were here.” Will explains.

Mercedes and Sam nod at the same time, still unable to speak, and while they make their way to the rooms, Emma quickly glances at her husband with a concerned look, because this scene can’t get any more awkward. Will gives her a knowing look as he walks Sam and Mercedes to the nursery.

After explaining them for the third time where to find everything they might need to take care of the baby, Will finishes, “Okay…So did you get everything? Remember that the bottles are–” Will is saying when Mercedes finally speaks up, “Don’t worry Mr. Schue I can…I mean, we can take care of him…You two go and have fun, and don’t worry about Dan, he’s in good hands…”

Will smiles because he knows his son is actually in good hands. “Okay, then we will be here by nine tops, so don’t worry and please make yourself at home, you can watch a movie or make some dinner. I think Emma left some pasta at the fridge so feel free to eat whatever you want and–”

“Don’t worry Mr. Schue…We will be fine” Mercedes reassures them, smiling at her former teacher.

“Yeah…Okay…Then I’ll see you later guys” Will says quickly giving Dan a quick kiss on his forehead and walking out of the nursery.

Emma walks in and quickly carrying her son, she gives him a soft kiss on his cheek and whispers, “Be good with uncle Sam and aunt Mercedes, okay? We’ll be back soon…” She tells her son as she passes him to Mercedes who immediately grabs him.

Emma walks to the door and before walking away she chimes, “There’s food on the fridge and all the emergency numbers are next to the phone…See you later guys!”

Mercedes and Sam politely smiles, and when they hear the front door closing, Sam takes a deep breath and finally speaking up, he says, “Well…This will be fun, right?”

Mercedes laughs, “Yeah…” And murmuring just to herself and to baby Dan she continues, “…Awkward, but fun…” Causing the baby to let out a cute giggle.

The two men arrive to the Planet Fitness Brooklyn Gym and as soon as they make their way inside, Blaine walks to the reception desk and Kurt stands there by the door with his eyes wide open. The place is amazing and Kurt suddenly feels excited about this new adventure.

After a few short minutes Blaine walks back from the reception desk and hands his fiance a black card. Kurt looks at it confused and Blaine explains “It’s an additional card from my membership. Now you can come here or to any Planet Fitness gym anytime you want and have access to all the services…” Blaine explains.

“Really?” Kurt asks excited. Blaine just nods. “Thank you!” Kurt exclaims, unable to hide his excitement and still looking around the place.

“What do you think?” Blaine asks following his fiance’s gaze.

“This place is amazing!”

“I’m glad you like it, now let’s go to the locker room.” Blaine says grabbing Kurt’s hand and guiding him to the right side of the place where the men and women’s lockers are off.

“Tanning beds!” Kurt exclaims as soon as they reach the men’s lockers.

“Yeah, and you can use them too…Now, this is our locker” Blaine explains, pointing to the locker with the number 21 on it. “You can leave your stuff here, the password is the same we use for all our stuff.”

“Thanks” Kurt tells his fiance with a smile

After they change into their sportswear outfits, the two boys return to the gym area and Blaine quickly explains his fiance how the whole place was divided. “…And that’s the cardio section, and right behind it you can find weightlifting…The desks over there are the personal training section, and obviously, behind us we have the lockers and–” He’s explaining when a tall, muscular guy speaks up.

“Hi, Blaine!”

“Oh! Hi, Harry! How are you?” Blaine immediately asks politely. “Please let me introduce you to my fiance…This is Kurt Hummel, Kurt this is Harry Scott my personal trainer”

Kurt extends his hand and smiling he introduces himself, “Nice to meet you Harry!”

“Likewise! It’s nice to finally meet the famous Kurt Hummel” Harry exclaims while quickly shaking hands with Kurt. “Blaine is always, and by always I mean the whole time he spends here, talking about you”

Kurt smiles because he doesn’t know what else to say and Harry continues, “Well, if either of you need my help…You know where to find me…See you later guys.” He says as he pats Blaine on the back and then walks away.

Once the trainer is gone Kurt turns around and facing Blaine, he asks, “The whole time you spend here?”

“It’s just a way of speaking.” Blaine replies a bit nervous. “He means every time I come here…But it’s not like all the time, or a lot of time for that matter.” Blaine trails off.

“Yeah I was just kidding…” Kurt laughs, nudging Blaine with his elbow so he knows he was just teasing him.

Blaine tries to laugh too, but he fails so he just gives his fiance a soft smile. “Umm…I think I’m going to start with the treadmill.”

Kurt looks around and quickly spots the spinning bikes. “I’ll try the spinning bikes. I think I need to regain my resistance first before trying something else…After all it’s been awhile..”

“Okay, then I’ll see you later!” Blaine replies, leaning over to give his fiance a quick peck on the lips before walking to the treadmills.

Kurt and Blaine put their ear buds simultaneously while a songs starts to play and echo through their ears.

_(Blaine)…Yeah! Come on now! Here we go! Let’s do it!. Oh!_

Blaine places his bottle of water next to the treadmill and adjusts the machine to his usual intense running routine as he sings.  

_(Kurt)…Yeah, ha, yeah. Push it push it to the limit limit ‘cause we’re in it to win it, in it to win it, oh yeah…_

Kurt climbs onto the spinning bike with easy grace and starts exercising slowly. He wants to let his legs to get used to the exercise again.

_(Blaine)…I realized that this is where my heart is. Now is the time to finish what I started. Can’t worry bout what other people might say. It’s who I am, gotta live my dream my own way…_

Blaine looks down at the number on the machine when he doesn’t feel the burn in his calfs that he wants. Raising the speed of the machine, the hazel-eyed man forces his feet to pick up the pace. Already feeling his heart pounding in his chest, he struggles to draw in oxygen. He squints his eyes trying to keep the sweat that is rolling down his face from seeping into his eyes. Bringing his right hand up to wipe the sweat from his brows, he shakes his head at himself thinking he isn’t pushing himself hard enough. Raising the speed up a little higher, he pushes off the conveyor belt with the rubber sole of his gym shows harder and faster feeling his body getting tired from exhaustion already.

_(Kurt)…Work, work it harder, gotta take it farther. No holding back you know we gotta do it right now. Be even better, work, work together. It’s now or never, show em how we shine…_

Kurt keeps a steady pace as he gets used to exercising again. Feeling a little thirsty, he grabs his bottle and while softly pedaling he takes a sip or two of water and continues singing.

_(Both)…We gotta push it push it to the limit, limit ‘cause we’re in it to win it, in it to win it, oh yeah. Push it push it to the limit, limit give it all we can give it, we’re in it to win it, oh yeah…_

With his chest heaving up and down and the burn in his calfs rising up into his thighs, Blaine hits the stop button on the treadmill and decides to move on to a weight lifting machine. Sitting down on a cushioned bench, Blaine sets his bottle of water next to him and wipes the sweat from his neck using a black hand towel he carries with him. He stands up and adds a few weights to the barbell as he continues to sing.

Kurt quickly gets bored with the spinning bike. Looking around the room he tries to find where he wants to go next. Swinging his legs over to the side of the bike he jumps down, grabbing his decorated plastic water bottle and straightening out his grey knee length sweater that was hanging off one shoulder. He brushes back a few stray hairs that fell from their perfectly gelled and styled place on his head as he moves to the stepper machine.

_(Blaine)…Push it, push it to the limit, limit, that’s right…_

Blaine lets out a harsh exhale as he puffs his chest up, and straightening his arms lifting 120 lbs in the air above his body. After a few reps, Blaine starts to feel the fatigue set in. Wanting to push himself harder to hopefully see results faster, he sets the barbell down on its rack. Quickly getting up from the bench he starts to add a few more weights to the barbell making it now 140 lbs. With this new weight, he slips back to the bench laying his back on the cushion and looking up towards the ceiling. He brings both hand up to grab the silver bar. His arms are shaking and his face turns red due to the extensive effort he has to put forth to lift the heavy weight after already running his body almost to the point of exhaustion.

_(Kurt)…Gonna turn it up, that’s the way we do it now. No time to stop the champions are in the house. Yeah we can be winners ’cause we understand our destiny is right here in our hands…_

Finally feeling the first few drops of sweat drip from his dark hair, Kurt smiles as he looks down to the screen on the stepper; seeing his work out has been the equivalent of stepping up a flight of steps over a mile long. Quickly grabbing his blue towel he wipes of the few drops of sweat from his neck and his face. He works so hard to keep moisturized and clear, before continue singing.

_(Blaine)…Work, work it harder, gotta take it farther. No holding back we’re reaching for the sky now. Be even better, work, work together, it’s now or never, show ‘em how far…_

Ignoring the burn and shaking quiver of his muscles telling him his body has had enough, Blaine pushes a few more reps. The veins in his hands and forearms start popping out turning an assortment of blues and purples. After pushing a few more reps past his limit, he sets the barbell back on its rack. Standing up he looks in the mirror in front of the weights. Lifting up his sleeve he flexes his muscles trying to see any changes. Sighing when he doesn’t see any significant changes, he moves to the leg press machine. Sitting on the small black chair, placing his feet on the metal plate loaded with weights in front of him. He sets his hands on the handle bars on each side of him, gripping on tightly as he pushes against the metal plate with the balls of his feet. Sucking his lips between his teeth as he feels the flex of his calfs.

_(Both)…We gotta push it push it to the limit, limit, ‘cause we’re in it to win it, in it to win it, oh yeah. Push it push it to the limit, limit, give it all we can give it, we’re in it to win it, oh yeah…_

Kurt and Blaine join their voices while they both give their best of themselves in their respective exercise routines.

_(Blaine)…Gotta work it now, work it out…_

Blaine continues pushing the weights with his legs to the point they are shaking. Kurt moves to a treadmill and sets a steady pace as he starts at a speedy walk.  

_(Both)…we got it…_

Blaine stops his work out to take a quick sip of his water. Lifting the bottle to his lips, he lets his eyes scan the room until they met the blue eyes he has fallen in love with. Kurt is now running a slow run. Smiling and giving a soft wave to his fiance, Blaine then turns back to his work out with a new found determination to push even harder, wanting to be his best self for Kurt. Or at least that’s the excuse he keeps telling himself.

_(Kurt)…Wanna hear the crowd, everybody now…(Blaine)…Gotta work it now, work it out…(Both)…can’t stop us…(Kurt)…Gotta show ‘em how we’re gonna bring the house down…_

Kurt looks over to Blaine and sees how his grey t-shirt has soaked through with sweat. Wanting to try to push himself after seeing how hard his fiance must have been working, Kurt speeds up a bit the treadmill and intensifies his training. Blaine keeps pushing, all the muscles in his legs are contracting becoming almost painful. Exhausting starts to take over as he squeezes his eyes shut tightly, puffing out his check with each breath. Both Kurt and Blaine, are tired, but neither of them want to end the routine yet.

_(Blaine)…Push it push it to the limit limit, ‘cause we’re in it to win it, in it to win it, let’s go…_

Blaine takes a deep breath and tries to give a little bit more of himself as he motivates with the song. Pushing it to the limit.

_(Kurt)…Push it push it to the limit limit, give it all we can give it, we’re in it to win it, oh yeah…_

Trying to make a last effort at his work out, Kurt turns up the speed to his treadmill and starts a steady paced run. He keeps a steady run for a while, but he’s soon out of breath and can’t keep going. He slows down the treadmill as the song comes to an end.

Meanwhile, Blaine keeps training hard at the leg press, sweat pouring for every pore on his body.

_(Both)…Push it push it to the limit, limit, ‘cause we’re in it to win it, in it to win it, oh yeah. Push it push it to the limit limit, give it all we can give it, we’re in it to win it, oh yeah. Push it push it to the limit, limit cause we’re in it to win it, in it to win it, oh yeah. Push it push it to the limit, limit, give it all we can give it, we’re in it to win it, oh yeah. Push it to the limit!.._

When the song ends Kurt steps out of the treadmill and goes back to look for Blaine. His fiance is now over at the leg press and before reaching him, Kurt notices how much he’s sweating. He looks like he’s pushing himself past the limits. Shaking his head, he reaches him and asks, “Honey, don’t you think we’ve had enough for today? I think I need to ease myself back into this.”

Blaine is reluctant to leave because he feels like he should still be working harder, so he just shakes his head, “Just ten minutes more, okay?”

Kurt frowns because he thinks his fiance is overstepping a little with his extreme routine and tries again, “Come on, Blaine! Let’s go…I want to go home! You look exhausted. Let’s go home…”

Blaine very reluctantly nods and climbs down the stepper. When he takes one step towards Kurt, he stumbles. His head is spinning and he suddenly feels dizzy. Blaine reaches out to grab onto Kurt, but in that moment his eyes flutter as his body goes limp, his knees buckle and he passes out.

“Blaine!” Kurt screams worried, rushing to bend down to help his fiance who’s now lying unconscious on the mats of the gym floor.

Santana stands in her kitchen making two cups of hot tea in a matching pair of white mugs. One has an _S_ written in calligraphy, while the other has a _B_ written in the same font. After dipping the tea bags in the steaming hot cups of water, Santana adds a spoonful of sugar. She stirs them and then sets the spoon in the sink. Picking up the two mugs, she walks into her living room and hands one of the cups to the other woman sitting on the couch with a silver laptop resting on her lap. “Here you go. You’ll have to use Britt’s cup, we don’t have any other mugs. Just don’t tell her.” She says half jokingly.

Taking the cup in her hands as the streams weeps about in the air and drawing it close to her chest, Rachel smiles. “Don’t worry, yet another secret of yours that is safe with me.”

“Well, when you say it like that Berry, you make it sound like I’m hiding a lot of shit from Brittany. I’m not. I’m always honest with her, and if I’m not it doesn’t take long for me to come clean. Have you seen that women’s pout?…Even superman himself would be powerless to it…” Santana trails off, getting lost in her thoughts of the blonde woman. “Anyways, I think proposing is like the one thing I’m aloud to keep from her right?”

Rachel rolls her eyes as a smile betrays her and tugs at the corner of her lips, “Yes, Santana, I think it’s safe to say you’re allowed to keep this one from her.”

Santana walks around the black coffee table and sits on the opposite side of the couch. Bringing the mug up close to her lips, she brings them together in a small _‘O’_ shape as she softly blows out a few puffs of air, trying to cool off the tea before bringing it the rest of the way to her lips and taking a sip.

“By the way, where is Brittany?”

Licking her lips as she brings the cup away from them, Santana sets the mug on a coaster on top of the matching end table to the left of her. Bringing her feet up to prop them up on the coffee table in front of her, she answers, “Well, most of the remodeling for the dance studio is finished except for the painting of the walls. Since we are kind of blowing through our savings pretty quickly, and even though Britt’s mom sends us money all the time, we are both too proud to use it. So Brittany decided she would just paint, instead of hiring someone to do it. So that’s where she’s at.”

“And how did you get out of helping her with that? That place is huge. Please tell me you didn’t let her to do it by herself.”

“Of course not, Berry. Some of her friends from the studio she was going too are helping her and I offered to help…..She-she ummm…She actually banned me from helping.”

Rachel snorts out a laugh before quickly covering her mouth with both of her hands, “I-I…S-sorr-rry” She tries to speak but she is laughing so hard that the words barely make it out clearly. Finally, getting control of her laughter, she swallows and sits up straighter before clearing her throat, “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to laugh.” She notices Santana’s eyes roll as she looks away from Rachel. “No, seriously, Santana. Explain. Why did she ban you from helping?”

“Well…Two different reason actually, I decorated most of the apartment.” Rachel looks around the room taking in the semi dark colored decor and nods as if saying _‘Yeah I can see that’._ “She says my style is too depressing. She’s painting all the walls yellow because yellow is the sign of smiley faces, and she doesn’t want any of my dark depressing colors on the walls when she’s trying to get people to dance….” Santana says sounding dejected. “And I might as well throw it all out there now so you can laugh it all up at once…But in high school me and Brittany were partners for an art project. Anyways, we had to paint a picture of a colorful meadow with flowers or something and I ended up making it look more like a black-hole…” Rachel pulls her bottom lip between her teeth trying to keep the corner of her lips from curling up to high as she hides her smile behind the back of her hand. Santana narrows her eyes at the brunette next to her. “Are you here to laugh at me or help me?”

Sucking her lips into her mouth to keep the laughter from escaping, Rachel takes a few deep breaths as she tries to get her laughter to subside. “You’re right, I’m sorry. Let’s talk about the proposal. What other ideas do you have besides the fancy dinner?”

Flipping her hair over her shoulders, Santana straightens her back before grabbing her laptop from Rachel’s lap. “Well another idea I had was taking a trip to Santa Monica Pier and proposing on the Ferris wheel…”

“Aww, that does sound super cute, but also a little over done don’t you think?” Rachel raises a questioning eyebrow to the Latina as she brings the mug that she has balanced on her knee, up to her lips, taking a quick sip before sitting it back in her lap.

Santana looks up from the LED screen in front of her and over to Rachel, “What are you talking about, Hobbit? That is like romanticism in it’s purest form.” She defends herself before softly whispering, “I know, I spent hours googling it…”

Sympathizing with the Latina, Rachel places her mug on the coffee table in front of her and shifting in her seat, she says, “I think you might be looking at this wrong. It’s not necessarily how romantic the gesture is. It’s about Brittany, and how much she would like it. Honestly I think you could step out of the shower and hand her a ring and say _‘Yo, babe, marry me?’_ And she’d be happy.” Rachel continues as she hears Santana mumble a _‘Wanky’_ under her breath, “But come on! You know Brittany better than anyone else! What would make her almost cry with happiness? What could you do to show her you are serious about wanting to spend the rest of your life with her?”

Looking out into the distance as she thinks, Santana’s eyes start to gloss over as a small smile plays at her lips. Images of blonde hair flowing, blue eyes sparkling and freckles dancing across Brittany’s nose plays out in her mind. Sometimes when she stops and thinks about her girlfriend, she wonders what she ever did to deserve someone as amazing as the blonde. Not knowing how exactly to put her feeling into words Santana opens her mouth to speak, but the sound of a knock at the door beats her to it.

Santana glaces to the door before uncrossing her legs, standing and heading towards the door to answer it. Halfway to the door from the couch, she freezes. Turning around she whispers to Rachel, “Oh my God Rachel! What if it’s Britt? Maybe she forgot her key! Oh God! What are we going to do? What if she sees you here and wonders why you’re here?”

Rachel creases her brows inward with a slight frown, “Well, Santana, we’re friends. It wouldn’t be strange for us to be hanging out at your house.”

Looking at Rachel like she is crazy, she mutters to herself, “Oh God, hanging out with Berry? She’ll definitely know something is up!” She tries to think of a few excuses as she takes the few steps she has left to the door. Twisting the knob and pulling open the door she sees a blonde standing in front of her, but not the one she was expecting, “Quinn?” Santana remains frozen in the doorway with her hand still resting on the door knob. “What the hell are you doing here?”

“Missed you too Santana…” Quinn smiles.

Santana smiles and steps aside letting Quinn step inside, closing the door behind her. “Yeah, yeah, but seriously why are you here? Last time I talked to you you were headed for vacation on summer break?”

“I heard we have a proposal to plan.” Quinn’s smile radiates showing her charms as she winks to ⅓ of the formerly know unholy trinity.

Santana looks over her shoulder to Rachel then back to Quinn. “She told you?”

“I can’t believe you didn’t.” Quinn teases. “This is a big deal Santana.”

She can’t help herself as a smile betrays her scowling face and spreads across her tanned cheeks. Quickly covering her smile with a new scowl she quirks, “Yes, thank you mother!” She looks from Quinn to the ceiling with a slight roll of her eyes.

Being used to Santana’s antics, Quinn just rolls her eyes and travels farther into the small apartment. She drops her duffel bag from her shoulder to the floor. Taking a seat next to Rachel, Santana is forced to take to the small leather arm chair that places in front of the living room window. “So, what’s the plan?  Do we know yet?”

“Not yet, since Berry here hasn’t had any helpful thoughts. She’s just shooting down all of mine…” Santana trails off. Looking from Quinn to Rachel, she says, “You’re an overly emotional woman shouldn’t you have some idea’s on how you’d like to be proposed too?”

“I’m going to overlook that comment and help you, for Brittany’s sake.” Rachel says, looking slightly offended. “Well Brittany loves to dance, so why don’t you create an intimate routine for the two of you, maybe at her studio after it’s closed?”

Santana reaches over and grabs her laptop from the armrest of the couch. Closing it she sets it next to her long forgotten tea mug on the end table. “Yeah, I guess something like that could work. I was thinking I wanted to sing a song too. I could tell her I’m coming to help close up, get her to dance with me; while I sing her a love song and hand her a rose with the ring on the stem?”

Rachel looks at Santana with a growing smile “Aww, Santana, you do have a heart underneath all that ice. I like this side of you.  You should show it more often.”

Santana crosses her arms over one of her plush throw pillows and says: “Shut it Gay-Berry, you ever speak to anyone about this and I’ll deny it, and let’s face it, who’s gonna believe you anyways?”

Blonde hair sways as Quinn shakes her head, “Good to see some things never change.” picking up a throw pillow she starts to pick at the decorated fringe around the pillows edges, “Okay, so a dance routine and a song? I think that’s a great idea. But are you sure you wanna do it at her studio? Just doesn’t seem personal enough.”

“Damn, Q, why do you have to always be right?” The Latina runs her fingers through her long raven locks, pressing her lips in a tight line as she thinks, “We’ve been through so much together. I want to do something that shows her how much we’ve grown together and how amazing the outcome has been. I know I don’t really talk about my feelings a lot. I think it’s overly annoying when couples gush about their feeling to their friends, but…I love her…More than anything in the world; and I can’t even explain how happy it would make me to be able to forever and always be her other half. The not nearly as amazing half, but she makes me a better person. I think you all can attest to that.” Santana lets out a deep chuckle. Looking up from her hands that are wringing her wrist in her lap, she sees her friends smiling faces. “Okay…Whatever, enough with this sentimental crap, can you guys just help me think of a plan here?”

The three girls continue to talk about Santana’s options when they hear the sound of a key turning in the door. All three heads snap up to look towards the front door when they see Brittany, covered in yellow paint from head to toe, saunter into the living room.  

Not expecting to see more than just Santana sitting in their shared living room, Brittany stops in her tracks. Spotting Quinn as one of the bodies taking presence on her couch she squeals in excitement, “Oh my gosh! Quinnie!!” Forgetting about the paint that covered her hands and most of her clothing she sprints around the coffee table passing Santana and heads straight to engulf Quinn in a hug. “What are you doing here?”

As Brittany wraps her arms around Quinn in an awkward positioned hug since Quinn is still sitting down, Quinn can’t help but think about the little secret being hidden from the taller blonde that brought her to L.A. in the first place. Squeezing the dancer a little tighter while biting her lip to keep herself from shouting _‘Congratulations’_ for a surprise she didn’t know anything about yet. Finally, letting her arms drop back to the lap of her crossed legs, Quinn remembers Brittany was asking her a question. _‘What was she doing here?’_ With an eased talent she learned growing up with her mother and father, Quinn thought of a quick perfect lie. “Summer break! And it’s been a while since I’ve seen you guys, I figured I’d come visit and reunite the unholy trinity.” Well it was just a little white lie since how most of it was the truth, she just left out a huge particular reasoning.

“Oh, well let me jump in the shower real quick and get all this paint off me and the four of us should order in some food and catch up!” Brittany flashes her girlfriend and friends a charming wide smile before kissing Santana on the cheek and making her way to the bedroom at the end of the short hallway and disappearing behind the door.

Santana jumps up from her seat in the chair and walks to peak her head down the hallway to make sure Brittany was out of earshot. She turns back around to face her friends, “I hate lying to Britt.”

Rachel, who still sits on the left edge of the couch, leans over the armrest and whispers, “Technically this is not a lie, it is an omission” Quinn nods and the three girls smile at each other.

Santana, being unusually sentimental, speaks in a low whisper to make sure her girlfriend just a few feet away wouldn’t hear, “I just really want to thank you guys for helping me with this, it really means a lot.”

Quinn scrunches her brows as she laughs, “Okay, who are you and what have you done with Santana Lopez?”

Laughing along with Quinn, Rachel gives an eye roll remembering the fight they had just a few weeks ago, “Oh, don’t worry Quinn, stay long enough and you’ll see her, trust me.”

“You know Berry I’m going to overlook that because propo–” Santana quickly closed her lips as she sees her blonde girlfriend come down the hallways and re-enter the living room. “Umm. because– prop, properly….Um, I know that would be rude to fight when Quinn traveled all this way to hang out with us. Yep!” Looking around the room at the three confused faces, Santana knows what she just said made no sense. “Right, okay. Food right? I’ll go get the delivery menu’s.” Santana quickly spits out, making a quick retreat to the kitchen.

Brittany looks from where Santana was just standing over to her two friends on the couch who wore knowing smiles. She squints her eyes as she thinks to herself, _‘Okay, something’s up.’_

Sam is leaning against the kitchen counter waiting for Daniel’s food to be ready. The microwave is spinning and Sam is staring at it completely lost in his thoughts. _‘How did I end up here?’_ He asks himself. When he first agreed to take care of Daniel, he never, ever thought he would end up doing it along with Mercedes. So far, he had managed to control himself in front of her, but he knew that if Mercedes kept doing what she had been doing, he would lose it eventually. _‘She’s just so sweet with the baby’_ He thinks to himself and rolls his eyes, because he hates how that girl really knows how to rock his world.

“Sam!” Mercedes yells from somewhere near the living room bringing Sam back to the reality. “Is Dan’s food ready?”

“Yeah…Just five seconds more…” Sam replies as he quickly takes Dan’s food out of the microwave and makes his way back to the living room where Mercedes seems to be playing a silly game with Dan, who can’t stop laughing.

“Here…” He says handing Mercedes the small colorful bowl. “It’s still hot so be careful”

“What’s this?” Mercedes asks, making a face of disgust the moment she takes a more close look to Dan’s food.

“I don’t know…It’s what Emma said was his favorite food. If you ask me I think it looks disgusting and I wouldn’t eat that, but I think he likes it…Look” Sam says, pointing to Daniel who is now stretching his little arms to try to reach out the bowl.

“You want your disgusting and smelly food, Dan?” Mercedes asks using her sweet-girly voice. Daniel squeals making Sam and Mercedes to laugh because that baby can’t get any more cuter.

Daniel starts to lean over as Mercedes starts to feed the little boy. Sam sits next to her and can’t help but smile. She’s very good with kids. “You’re very good with kids” Sam blurts out.

“Just with the cute ones…And this little boy is the cutest!” Mercedes says using her sweet-girly voice again.

Sam smiles at her again and before he realizes what he’s saying, he speaks up, “I’d like to have kids someday…” The words quickly slipping from his mouth.

Mercedes looks up surprised and Sam, trying to cover up what he just said, continues, “…Not now I mean, in ten years or so…And you?…Ummm, would you-would you like to have kids on your own?” He asks a bit ashamed.

Mercedes looks at him with soft loving eyes and says, “Yeah, someday…But not on my own though.” She replies, giving him a knowing smile.

Sam smiles awkwardly and looks away trying to hide his blush. _‘Why did I ask that?’_ He thinks to himself as Mercedes laughs and resumes her task of feeding Dan. The two former lovers fall into a comfortable silence as the watch as Daniel tries to stick his hand in his bowl of orange tinted food.

After the little boy is done with the food, Sam takes the empty bowl to the kitchen while Mercedes wipes Daniel’s face and hands with a wet napkin. Sam walks back to the living room and wrinkles his nose in disgust, “I think is time to change this baby boy, don’t you think?”

Mercedes nods in agreement. “Yeah…You’re as smelly as your food, Dan!” She tickles Dan’s tummy and causing the boy to burst into laughter with big eyes and a wide smile. “And don’t worry Sam…I can take care of that.” She says, as she stands up and walks to the nursery to take out all she needs to change Daniel.

Sam follows her to the nursery and stands by the doorway as she changes the baby. Standing leaned up against the door frame, he can’t help but look at her as a huge grin spreads across his face. _‘She’s going to be such a great mother someday…’_ He thinks to himself and quickly shakes his head trying to erase that thought from his mind. Reminding himself that they are just friends now and that is for the best. _‘Right?’_

In that moment, Daniel starts to cry and Mercedes immediately picks him up and start to rock him.

Walking into the room, Sam stands behind Mercedes and looks over her shoulder at Daniel. He’s sleepy and frowning uncomfortably. Sam smiles and trying to calm him down starts to sing a song to help him sleep.

_(Sam)…Ooh, little sleepy boy, do you know what time it is? Well, the hour of your bedtime’s long been past…_

Mercedes looks at the blonde man and gives him a huge lovely smile, because what he’s doing is sweet and she can’t help but enjoy the performance too as she keeps rocking Daniel in her arms. She always did love the soft sound of his voice.

_(Sam)…And though I know you’re fightin’ it. I can tell when you rub your eyes. You’re fadin’ fast, oh, fadin’ fast…_

Sam picks up a small ukulele that’s placed off at the left corner of the room and starts to play the song making Daniel to stop crying as he stares at Sam with big wondering eyes and a smile. Apparently this boy is used to listen to songs before bedtime, probably sung by his talented father.

_(Sam)…Won’t you run come see St. Judy’s Comet roll across the skies and leave a spray of diamonds in its wake. I long to see St. Judy’s Comet sparkle in your eyes when you awake…Oh, when you wake, wake…_

Mercedes notices that Daniel is starting to fall asleep in her arms so she grabs a blue blanket from Daniel’s wardrobe and places it around him to try to keep him warm. Watching the little boy press his face farther into Mercedes neck hiding his drooping eyes as Sam keeps singing and walking right behind her.

_(Sam)…Little boy, won’t you lay your body down. Little boy, won’t you close your weary eyes. Ain’t nothing flashin’ but the fireflies…_

Daniel’s eyes snap back open as big water tears threaten to spill. He whimpers a bit and extends his little arms trying to reach for his teddy bear. Sam follows Dan’s gaze and immediately picks up the bear and hands it to the little boy who smiles and hugs his teddy bear as he closes his eyes.

_(Sam)…Well, I sang it once and I sang it twice, I’m going to sing it three times more. Going to stay ’til your resistances overcome ’cause if I can’t sing my boy to sleep…well, it makes your famous daddy look so dumb…look so dumb…_

Mercedes, still carrying Daniel, walks to the living room and takes a seat at the couch as the little boy lays his head back down on her shoulder clutching tightly to his bear with one hand and sucking his thumb with the other. Sam starts to walk around the room as he sings and Daniel’s eyes get heavier and he slowly starts to drift away to sleep.

_(Sam)…Won’t you run come see St. Judy’s Comet roll across the skies and leave a spray of diamonds in its wake. I long to see St. Judy’s Comet sparkle in your eyes when you awake, …Oh, when you wake, wake…_

Mercedes looks at Sam and for a moment she pictures him doing that for their own kids and a shiver goes through her body. She shakes her head and immediately looks down to Daniel, who’s still fighting his sleep by trying to keep open his heavy eyelids.

_(Sam)…Little boy, little boy, won’t you lay your body down. Little boy, little boy won’t you close your weary eyes. Ain’t nothin’ flashin’ but the fireflies…_

Sam takes a seat next to Mercedes and leaning over to reach for Daniel’s ear, he keeps singing making his voice and the sound coming from the ukulele to go as soft as a lullaby causing Daniel to immediately give up and finally close his eyes.

_(Sam)…Ooh, little sleepy boy, do you know what time it is? Well, the hour of your bedtime’s long been past. Though I know you’re fightin’ it. I can tell when you rub your eyes that you’re fadin’ fast, ooh, fadin’ fast…_

When the song comes to an end, Sam and Mercedes look at each other and smile softly. Daniel is now sleeping peacefully in Mercedes arms wrapped in his blue blanket. The two former lovers sigh relieved and lean against each other as time passes and without noticing, they fall asleep too.

Kurt is inside the ER waiting room of the Brooklyn hospital center. Sitting in an uncomfortable chair and looking around the room at the dull colors reflecting exactly how he’s feeling. He’s sitting alone at one of the long set of chairs with his head buried between his legs as he tries to process what happened with Blaine. He feels numb and lost, as his mind tries to recall the last 40 or 50 agonizing minutes of his life. _‘Why him?’_ He asks to himself. He had to take Blaine to the nearest hospital after the latter, lost consciousness at the gym.

Kurt takes a deep breath and leans his head on the wall as he closes his eyes. As much as he tries to understand what happened, he can't. He knows something’s not right, but he can't pinpoint what is it yet.

“Please let him be alright…” Kurt murmurs to himself. He has never been religious, and he certainly was not praying to someone in particular. He was just asking the universe for his fiance to be okay.

Kurt is looking intently at the white tiled floor as he waits to hear some news from the doctor. It’s been almost one hour since they arrived and he still doesn’t know if his fiance is alright.

A tall man with gray hair emerges from one of the revolving doors and Kurt immediately jumps from his seat and looking at the doctor with concerned eyes, he asks, “How is he?”

The doctor smiles softly at Kurt and using his reassuring voice, he says, “Don’t worry son, Blaine is fine now. He is a little weak, and we had to put an IV to help him, but he is fine now…”

“But what happened? Why did he faint? He is used to exercising almost every day...I don’t understand what happened!” Kurt says letting out all his concern.

“Well, we are still waiting for some test results, but so far I can tell you that he passed out due to malnutrition. We believe he suffered a decompensation. He pushed himself so hard to the point that his body ran out of energy…” The doctor explains.

Kurt can’t believe what he’s hearing. _‘Blaine? Malnutrition?’_ He thinks to himself and externalizing his concerns, he asks, “Malnutrition?” It comes out almost as a whisper, as if he is afraid to say the word out loud, fear of it being true.

“Have you noticed any changes in his eating habits? Has he been eating properly?” He asks.

Kurt thinks about it for a minute and suddenly all the pieces fit together. The skipped meals, the no desserts rule, the calorie counting, the obsession with the gym, the _‘healthy’_ food.  “No...I’m afraid he has not…” Kurt trails off.

Reassuringly and placing a comforting hand on Kurt’s shoulder, Blaine’s doctor explains, “Well, that certainly explains all his symptoms. However, as I already told you, we’re waiting for some results and we’ll run some complementary tests just to be sure he’s okay…”

Kurt nods unable to speak for a minute and fighting back the tears, he asks, “Can I see him?”

“Yes, just remember he’s still a little weak, so he may be a little sleepy. But he has been asking for you since he woke up, so go and see him. He’s in the room 402 on the fourth floor.” He tells him and before walking away he reassures. “I’ll see you two once I have the results…” As he crosses the ER’s exit door

Kurt immediately runs and grabs his and Blaine’s bag from the chairs where he placed them when they arrived to the hospital. The moment he’s picking up his fiance’s bag, the memory of the incident with the pills during the Fashion Week comes to his mind. He remembers Blaine mentioning that day that he had left his stuff at the Vogue tent. Kurt didn’t see Blaine’s _‘stuff’,_ because he was sick, but he remembered the bag he opened looking for some Aspirin and it was black with red stripes. Just like the one he had in front of him right now. _‘Crap! It’s the same bag!’_ Kurt thinks to himself as he quickly opens the bag and finds the same pill bottles, one of laxatives and one of diet pills.  

“What did you do Blaine?” He mutters to himself as he runs his hand through his hair suddenly feeling guilty for having overlooked all the symptoms.  

Taking a deep breath, Kurt walks to the elevator and reaches Blaine’s room. Without knocking, he opens the door and slowly walks in. Blaine is lying on the bed with his eyes closed and Kurt feels his heart dropping to the floor just by looking at his fiance lying there with tubes around him and an annoying machine marking the beat of his heart.

“Blaine...Honey...Are you awake?” Kurt whispers, walking closer to the bed.

Blaine opens his eyes slowly and mumbles a weak, “I’m sorry…” As he wakes up and his eyes immediately fill will guilty tears.

Kurt shakes his head and taking a seat on the empty chair next to the bed, he says while grabbing Blaine’s hand, “Shhh...There’s nothing to apologize for.”

Fighting back his tears, trying to remain strong in front of his lover, Kurt sniffs a few times before continuing. “But we need to talk about this. We both made a mistake, you when you did what you did, and I when I didn't pay attention to what was happening to you...but we will fix it together, okay?”

Blaine just nods as some tears start to roll down his face. Kurt immediately leans over and wipes his fiance’s face with the back of his sleeve. “Don’t cry…” He places a soft kiss to a pale cheek.

“I’m afraid…” Blaine replies. “I don’t want to lose you…”

“You’re not going to lose me Blaine. I don't know how many times I have to  tell  you that. You need to talk and share everything with me...I’m your partner, your friend and soon I’ll be your husband…And I just want to help you, because I love you...” Kurt sighs, trying to keep his emotions at bay.

Blaine closes his eyes as more tears roll down his face. Kurt takes a deep breath and sits back on the chair, “Look...This is not easy for me either. One day I think we’re in this happy place, and the next one everything is red, and I feel us drowning in this sea of doubts and insecurities. I know that’s probably how life is...Sometimes you’re up and sometimes you’re down, but I don’t want to lose you either. But every time you keep something from me, you make me feel like I’m losing you and that terrifies me...” Kurt trails off, as some tears roll down his face too. Feeling all the emotions he had been holding since he saw Blaine lying on the floor finally kicking him.

Blaine keeps his eyes closed as he tries to find the right words to say to his fiance and the _courage_ to confess his deepest fears. Fears, he hasn't even admitted to himself yet.

Kurt, noticing his fiance’s silence, closes his eyes too and starts to hum. He doesn’t know how to express what he’s feeling and he knows he has to help his fiance and at the same time, he needs to share his own fears too. It’s now or never.

_(Kurt)...I'm sinking inside and the maps and lines are broken down tonight. I swallow my pride, but we're drowning in the ocean and it's tearing my heart open baby…We're high then we're low, first it's yes then it's no, and we're changing like the tides. Yeah, but I want you, I need you, and I guarantee you we'll make it out alive…_

Blaine opens his eyes and notices that Kurt is singing with his eyes closed and that only means that he’s trying to give more meaning to what he is singing. Blaine frowns and very slowly he leans over to grab his fiance’s hand. Kurt smiles, and still with his eyes closed, he keeps singing, ignoring the few tears that escape from his eyes.

_(Kurt)...'Cause I don't wanna fight no more, even when the waves get rough. I don't wanna see the day we say we've had enough. And I don't wanna fight this war, bullets coming off our lips. But we stick to our guns and we love like battleships...Like battleships…_

Kurt, squeezing Blaine’s hand tightly, lets his mind remember everything they have lived since they first met. Their time at Dalton, McKinley, the awful and painful time when they were not together; Blaine moving to New York and the failed first attempt to live together, the fights, the always intense make up’s...And the good times. Because there were always good times, even when it looked like nothing could go right, something happened between them that made them come together again; and that’s why Kurt believed this love was something worth fighting for.

_(Both)...Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom, boom, boom. Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom...And the cannon goes. Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom, boom, boom. Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom...And the cannon goes…_

Blaine wipes some tears from his face and clearing his throat, he starts to sing weakly, as he tries to harmonize the song. Kurt immediately opens his eyes and although he’s crying, he can’t help but smile when their teary eyes meet.

_(Kurt)...Bombs fly through the air, and I know that we're both playing not so fair. Ohh, show, show me you care. I got my white flag up and it's waving. 'Cause you know this love's worth saving baby...We're high then we're low, first it's yes then it's no, and we're changing like the tides. Yeah, but I want you, I need you, and I guarantee you we'll make it out alive…_

Kurt, still singing, stands up from the chair and sits at the edge of the bed. Blaine smiles at him and Kurt immediately extends his left hand to caress his fiance’s face. Blaine closes his eyes and leans into the touch, just enjoying the closeness of the love of his life and some more tears escape from his eyes. Kurt uses his free hand to wipe the tears from the hazel-eyed man’s face and gently kisses him on the cheek.

_(Kurt)...'Cause I don't wanna fight no more, even when the waves get rough. I don't wanna see the day we say we've had enough. And I don't wanna fight this war, bullets coming off our lips. But we stick to our guns and we love like battleships. Like battleships…_

Blaine opens his eyes again and this time Kurt is sure that the song was the best idea ever. There’s a spark of relief in Blaine’s hazel eyes that makes Kurt’s heart to skip several beats. Now, Kurt’s one hundred percent sure that they are going to make it out alive, as the song he’s singing, says.

_(Both)...Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom, boom, boom. Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom...And the cannon goes. Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom, boom, boom. Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom…And we love, yeah we love. And we love, yeah we love…_

With a new attitude, Blaine starts to sing again trying to backup his fiance's impromptu performance. Kurt laughs with relief and grabs Blaine’s hands as they join their voices again to create the perfect harmony, as usual.

_(Kurt)...I'm sinking inside, can we finally put our weapons down tonight? 'Cause I don't wanna fight no more, even when the waves get rough. I don't wanna see the day we say we've had enough. And I don't wanna fight this war, bullets coming off our lips. But we stick to our guns and we love like battleships. Like battleships…_

Kurt looks intently into teary, but still beautiful, hazel eyes as he keeps singing. Blaine takes a deep breath and nods, letting Kurt know he understood what he wanted to say with the song. Kurt smiles and before the song comes to an end, they join again to sing the last part of the song. As the team, the couple that they have always been.

_(Both)...Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom, boom, boom. Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom...And the cannon goes. Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom, boom, boom. Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom...And the cannon goes. Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom, boom, boom. Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom...And the cannon goes. Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom, boom, boom. Boom, ba-boom, boom, ba-boom....And we love like battleships…_

When the songs ends Blaine whispers a soft "Thank you" to Kurt. Because now he knows that what he needed was some kind of reassurance from his fiance to help him get things into perspective. Kurt just leans over and kisses him.

"I love you..." Kurt whispers, as he lies down on Blaine's bed and rests his head on his fiance's shoulder. Blaine takes a deep breath and knowing he has to share everything with the man he loves, he speaks up, "I've always felt insecure about myself. That’s not something new and you know it, but this time things were different. I lost control and I’m very sorry. I wasn’t feeling okay with the way I looked and I figured that some days at the gym and a strict diet would be the solution. I didn’t tell you because honestly I didn’t want to worry you with something I thought it was just a phase…”

“But we went through something similar last year Blaine, this is certainly not a phase and you know it…” Kurt states raising his head and looking into hazel eyes.

“Well, now I know that, but before any of this happened I was sure it was just something that would eventually disappear. Do you remember the day we went shopping and we chose the same pair of pants?”

“Yeah...The ones you didn’t buy although you looked fabulous in them?”

“Yeah...Maybe for you I looked fabulous, but when I looked into the mirror, fabulous was the last thing I saw. I compared myself with the way you looked and that’s when I lost it.” Blaine says.

Kurt’s jaw drops and before he can add anything Blaine continues, “I know this is not a competition, I know I shouldn't do that, I know that we are different and all of that, but at that moment I just wanted to look as good as you, so yeah I started skipping meals, I worked out a lot and-and--” Blaine trails off, still not sure of how to confess Kurt about the pills he started to take a few months ago.

“And you started to take some pills...I know…” Kurt admits, giving his fiance a reassuring smile.

“Did the doctor tell you?” Blaine asks surprised.

“No…” Kurt confesses. “I found the pills last month during the Fashion Week...Dwayne, one of the models, told me he had some Aspirin in his bag and I opened yours thinking it was his and I found them. I wasn’t surprised by them, because you know models are obsessed with being skinny, but today...When the doctor explained that you had passed out due to malnutrition I put all the pieces together and I realized your bag was the same bag I had mistaken with Dwayne’s. “ Kurt explains.

“I’m sorry Kurt…”

“I know you are...And I’m curious to know, who gave you those pills, Blaine?”

"A guy at the gym who said they helped to lose extra weight and stay energized…” Blaine explains causing Kurt to roll his eyes.

“You do know you could have killed yourself, right?” Kurt demands, giving Blaine a serious look.

“Yeah...That’s what the doctor said. I’m sorry, babe...It won’t happen again. I promise” Blaine pleads making the scout’s promise sign.

Kurt shakes his head trying to suppress a smile and takes a deep breath, “You know? Maybe I have to apologize too...”

“Why?” Blaine asks, getting a bit confused as to why his fiance would have to apologize. He was not the one lying on a bed with an IV hooked up to him and the guilt of lying to his fiance for months.

“Because I didn’t pay enough attention. I should have guessed all of this the moment it started. I’m your partner. I should have seen all the symptoms. And...And maybe last year when we had that incident with _‘your instrument getting out of tune’_ and I suggested that new diet...I…I kind of started to feed your insecurities and for that I’m very--”

“Don’t Kurt! Please, don’t! This is not your fault...And don’t you dare to say otherwise. This is something I've always been struggling with.” Blaine explains. “Do you remember that talk we had about the different Blaines? Dalton!Blaine, McKinley with Kurt!Blaine, McKinley without Kurt!Blaine, and so on?” Blaine asks.

Kurt just nods, because he remembers that talk as if it had happened yesterday. “Well…” Blaine continues, “Have you ever thought about what all those Blaines have in common?” Blaine asks.

“No…” Kurt whispers looking at his fiance.

“Self-confidence issues…”

“But Dalton--” Kurt starts to say, but he’s quickly interrupted by Blaine. “I know babe, Dalton!Blaine never had self-confidence issues, and that’s partially true. Dalton was my safe haven, Kurt. I hid there from the people that bullied me. I even admitted that to you when I first met you. I ran remember? I didn’t call them out...”

Kurt’s eyes go wide as he starts to understand what Blaine is trying to explain.

“That’s why I always felt confident wearing that silly blazer Kurt. It gave me some kind of strength. Anyways...Then, when I met you, and I transferred to McKinley _you_ became my safe haven Kurt. You gave me that confidence, that strength I needed to keep believing in myself.” Blaine explains as he suddenly starts to understand everything himself. “When you graduated I thought I would be able to handle your absence, but I couldn't and that’s when I began to look for new ways to feel safe again…Confident”

“Blaine I…” Kurt begins, not really knowing what to say. He’s connecting the dots too, and suddenly everything made sense.

“Let me finish...This is the first time I put all the pieces together…” Blaine explains, feeling how the chaos that was in his head starts to have some kind of order. “I’m not trying to justify myself with this, on the contrary...I’m just trying to understand myself…”

“I know.” Kurt replies with a soft smile on his face.

Blaine smiles back and says, “Anyways...I think that what I’m trying to explain to both of us is that there is a deeper reason behind all the mistakes I've made, or the decisions I’ve taken and it is until now that I realize about everything…and--” Blaine trails off as he takes a deep breath. “...And I think I have a problem…”

Kurt smiles reassuringly and grabs Blaine’s hand. “That’s the first step honey, to admit that you have a problem. We can now look for some professional help, so that we can get through this together.”

“Professional help?” Blaine asks frowning. "Yes, professional help ..." Kurt repeats, looking at his fiance with soft eyes.

"But..." Blaine starts to complain

“Blaine…” Kurt quickly interrupts, not wanting to insist, but letting Blaine know it's something he needs to do.

Blaine pouts and quickly kisses Kurt’s cheek, “I’ll think about it, okay?”

Kurt shakes his head and murmurs, “Okay...” With a playful smile as the doctor slowly enters the room. Kurt, realizing they are not alone anymore, jumps from the bed in less than two seconds and tries to straighten his clothes and hair.

The doctor looks at the two boys suspiciously and with a playful smile he states, “I see you feel a whole lot better, Blaine” Blaine just gives the grey-haired man a nod as he continues. “Well...If you had told me that seeing Kurt was the solution to your problem then I wouldn’t have put that IV in your arm…” The doctor teases as he reads Blaine’s charts.

Kurt and Blaine look at each other and smile as they wait for the doctor to give them some news. They grey-haired man looks up from the charts and looking at the two boys he smiles, “Are you ready to go home?”

“Can I go home today?” Blaine asks excited.

“Yes, we have the results and fortunately everything is fine. We just have to talk about some precautions we need to take and all those details like possible following up with a psychologist, but in a couple of hours you’ll be back home…”

Kurt and Blaine smile broadly, because that’s the best news they could have heard.

“Now, let’s get into business so that Kurt can go fill out some paperwork we need before you leave, and you two can finally go home…” The doctor finishes as both Kurt and Blaine, nod and pay attention to all the doctor instructions. Suddenly eager to go home, to their safe haven.

The moon illuminates the room casting shadows on the walls in the small bedroom. The two pane glass window are slightly ajar as the night breeze softly tosses the curtains. Brittany lays on her side of the bed watching the rise and fall of Lord Tubbington chest as she strokes a hand over his head and down the length of his back gaining a purr in response. It was a little past ten at night and she couldn’t get herself to fall asleep even though she could feel the sandy feeling behind her eyelids as they begged to be closed, but she couldn’t sleep without her girlfriend next to her.

Santana had left about ten minutes ago to take Quinn to her hotel. They offered for her to stay with them, but Quinn refused saying she didn’t want to impose as well as hearing any late night screaming. _‘Why would we be screaming?’_ Brittany faked innocences as she sent Santana a knowing wink.

After witnessing the awkwardness between her three friends when they ate dinner, Brittany knew something was going on. They were hiding something from her. She may not catch on to some things so quickly, but the one thing she knew better than anything else was Santana. The way the Latina acted was so unusual to the blonde. It was as if Santana was afraid to let anyone else speak in fear of slipping up a secret that they all shared. Brittany’s lips tug into a quick frown at the thought that her girlfriend would be hiding something from her.

Looking over to her best friend, someone who has posed as her confidant, Lord Tubbington, she speaks up, “I know you and Santana aren’t the best of friends, but…Has she said anything to you?” Pausing to let the feline reply, Brittany quickly jerks her hand back from its previous resting place on the cat’s back. “No! Absolutely not! I definitely don’t think she’s cheating, Lord Tubbington! I know I can trust Santana. She’d never hurt me like that.” She narrows her eyes as she scolds the large cat.

Lord Tubbington turns his head as his eyes meet his owner’s and he flips his tail while letting out a loud _Meow_. Brittany’s eyebrows shoot up as she sucks her upper lip in her mouth scraping it with her bottom teeth as she thinks about the cat’s response. “What? You think she’s planning some surprise? But it’s not my birthday? Well she does keep saying she’s proud of me about how great the studio is coming along.”

Bringing her hand back over to rest on the Bengal cat’s head as she scratches behind his ear resulting in him letting out another _Meow_ as he starts to purr loudly. “You know I really thought the moving again would help you stay off drugs, I just want you to know how proud Santana and I are that you kicked your ecstasy addiction. Oh! Maybe that’s what she’s planning! The surprise isn’t for me, Lord Tubbington! It’s for you! For going a whole seven months without joining a gang or doing drugs! Well there was that one cigarette I found by the window, but we’ll overlook that one because I’m so proud of you!” She reaches over and picks the huge cat up. Hugging him while scratching behind his ear. Lord Tubbington meows again as Brittany kisses the back of his head. The blonde lays her head back down on her pillow. Scooting the large cat over to snuggle close the her she continues to pet him as she waits for her girlfriend’s return.

Will and Emma arrive home after the successful annual teacher’s Carmel High Gala. They are laughing and giving each other playful looks because they really had a great time.

“Shhh…You’re going to wake our neighbors” Emma says, softly patting Will’s back.

“Sorry…” Will whispers, as he takes out his keys to open door.

Emma rolls her eyes playfully as her husband opens the door of their home. The moment they step in, the overwhelming silence strikes them.

“They’re probably sleeping.” Emma whispers.

Will just nods as they both walk on their tiptoes to the living room where they find Mercedes and Sam sleeping on the couch with Daniel still in Mercedes’ arms.

Emma and Will look at each other and smile, because the scene is too cute. Mercedes’ head is on Sam’s shoulder and the blonde’s man arm is wrapped around Mercedes, holding her and Daniel still. It’s like a family picture.

Emma walks near the couch and with a soft voice, she tries to wake them up. “Sam…Mercedes….” She whispers, but they don’t move. Sam just shifts a little and tightens his arm around Mercedes and Daniel.

Emma sighs and turning around to face her husband she asks, “Now what?”

Will shrugs as he undoes his bowtie. Looking at his former students, he smiles and walks near the couch to help his wife to wake them up. “Mercedes…Sam…” He whispers, leaning a little to reach their ears and not wake up Daniel in the process.

“What!?” Sam exclaims, jumping a little and snapping his eyes open as he scans the room.

“Calm down, it’s just us, Sam…” Will quickly tells the blonde man.

Sam lets out a small, _‘Oh’,_ as he finally wakes up. Emma and Will laugh and in that moment Mercedes opens her eyes too looking around as disoriented as Sam was. “What happened–” She is saying when she notices the two pair of strange eyes looking at them. “Mr. Schue…I-I…Sorry we fell asleep.”

Will laughs and Daniel starts to shift uncomfortably in Mercedes’ arms. Emma, noticing that her son is starting to wake up, immediately extends her arms as she says, “Here…Let me help you with Dan” As she picks up her baby and walks to the nursery.

Sam and Mercedes stand up and look at each other not really knowing what else to do. Sam, trying to break the ice, asks, “And how was the gala, Mr. Schue? Did you have fun?”

“It was amazing, the food was delicious and the music was good. We really had a great time. By the way, thank you both for taking care of our little boy. I hope he didn’t cause any problems…”

“On the contrary, Mr. Schue! He’s a lovely boy!” Mercedes says smiling.

“Yeah, Mr. Schue, he’s amazing. By the way, I borrowed your ukulele to sing him a song…” Sam says as he runs his hands through his hair.

“Thank you for that, Sam! He loves when I sing to him before bed.”

Mercedes quickly glances at her clock, “Mr. Schue I’d really like to stay and catch up with you, but it’s a bit late and I really have to go…Call me when you need help with Dan, it was such a pleasure…”

“Will do Mercedes…You want me to call a cab for you?” Will asks already picking up the phone.

“Don’t worry Mr. Schue…My parents’ house is not that far…I’ll just walk home…” Mercedes replies.

“Are you sure?” Her teacher asks worried.

“Yeah…Have a great night Mr. Schue and I’ll see you around.” Mercedes says while she quickly hugs him goodbye and walks to the door.

“I should probably go too…” Sam says awkwardly. “Call us anytime, it was a pleasure to take care of him…Please say bye to Emma from us…”

“I’ll go…take care guys! See you around” Will says as he walks both Mercedes and Sam to the door.

Once outside Sam and Mercedes look at each other and millions of unsaid words travel between them. Sam looks at the now closed door of Mr. Schue’s house and exhaling, he says, “Well…That was fun…”

“Yeah…” Mercedes awkwardly says.

Sam runs again his fingers through his hair and shyly looking over to Mercedes he asks,  “Would you like me to walk you home?”

Mercedes hesitates for a minute, but when she looks into bright green eyes, the words slipped from her mouth, “Yeah I’d love that…” Noticing what she just said, she tries to cover it up. “I mean, sure! Why not? Friends walk each other home all the time…”

“Yeah, they do…” Sam simply replies as they both start to walk out of the building.

As they walk down the sidewalk, side by side, their hands keep brushing each other’s and it takes everything in both of them not to reach out and just grab the other’s hand in their own. They walk silent and awkwardly until they reach Mercedes’ doorstep.

“We’re here.” Sam announces as soon as they spot Mercedes’ house.

“Yeah…’ Mercedes trails off while looking over the house. All the lights are off so that means that either her parents are not home or they are already sleeping.

“I-I guess I’ll see you one of these days, right?” Sam stutters, trying to break the ice.

“Sure…” Mercedes replies looking down.

“Ummm…Then I’ll better go home…Ummm..See you later.” He struggles with himself on whether or not to kiss her. After some seconds he kisses her on the cheek and quickly turns around and walks away just whispering “Goodnight.”

Mercedes exhales as she looks how the blonde man disappears in the dark of the night and she whispers, “Goodnight…” Before entering her house and closing the door behind her.

Kurt’s lying in bed with Blaine still sleeping peacefully beside him. He has his laptop on his lap as he’s reading some article about self-esteem issues. It’s a bit early, but he couldn’t sleep much anyways. He stayed up most of the night just watching his fiance sleep and trying to figure out a way to help him and realizing he needed to learn more about Blaine’s problem.

Kurt scans the page and reads to himself. “ _Many people look in the mirror and see someone they don’t like very much. They see faults, flaws and failures. They feel shame, embarrassment and maybe even anger toward themselves. Part of the reason some people have poor self-esteem is a discrepancy between expectations and reality (though this reality is usually distorted). According to Ryan Howes, Ph.D, psychologist, writer and professor in Pasadena, California, ‘Deep down we’ve all constructed an idea of who we ‘should’ be: how we should look, act, think, feel and be regarded by others.’ Not meeting these ‘shoulds’ can have a negative impact on self-esteem. ‘When we fail to match those standards, one response may be frustration, anger, or even hatred for the parts of ourselves that don’t measure up…”_

Kurt analyzes the text and continues, _“Low self-esteem can result from a variety of factors, according to Celeste Gertsen, Ph.D, a clinical psychologist in Port Jefferson, Long Island, who specializes in helping people overcome self-esteem struggles. ‘Low self-esteem can stem from problems in the family, societal problems (such as poverty or discrimination) or an internalization of loss…”_

 _‘His dad…’_ Kurt thinks to himself as he keeps documenting on the subject. “ _It can develop at a young age. ‘It starts early, as soon as we’re old enough to know our own name,’ Howes says, possibly sparked by the desire to get our needs met. As he explains, all of us have a need for “attention, love, safety, affirmation, and belongingness. We learn that we have some control over getting these needs met. When these needs aren’t met, however, we look for reasons why. Howes gives the example of getting rejected by a friend. Some people automatically assume that the rejection is personal, either because they weren’t charming enough or are just flawed in general.”_

Kurt keeps reading as the article explains why some people struggle with self-esteem issues, but not others. He reads about shaming environments and the impact they have on the foundation of an individual’s self confidence, and about distorted perspectives as crucial points in working through self-esteem issues. Kurt keeps reading until he reaches a section that says, _‘Challenges & Strategies to Build Self-Esteem’_, paying special attention, he continues reading quietly.

 _“Trying to help someone accept that they are okay can be as difficult as telling them what they always thought was the color green is actually red,’ Howes says. Initially, it seems unthinkable: ‘It just can’t be.’ Low self-esteem and its accompanying distorted perspective also can serve as an anti-anxiety strategy that brings comfort–”_ Kurt is reading when Blaine starts to shift.

Kurt closes his laptop and places it at the nightstand. “Hi, there, sleepyhead…” He exclaims when Blaine opens one eye. “How are you feeling?”

Blaine just smiles and keeps staring at his fiance’s beautiful blue eyes.

“What is it? Cat got your tongue?” Kurt asks playfully resting his head on his arm.  

Blaine shakes his head. “No…I was just lost in your eyes…They’re beautiful”

Kurt blushes for the sudden morning compliment, and can’t help but smile like a fool. Blaine always knows what to say to make him feel confident about his looks. As he realizes that, he also understands that he needs to find a way to do the same for his fiance.

“Well thank you for that, but I find your eyes even more beautiful” Kurt flirts with a soft smile. Blaine laughs a little and Kurt continues, “How are you feeling?”

“Tired…” Blaine confesses while stretching himself.

“That’s normal, the doctor said you were going to be feeling like that for a couple of days, but you look better…Less pale. I’d say that you’re almost back to your usual handsome self…” Kurt says winking at him.

“Almost?” Blaine asks crooking his head to one side and giving his fiance a questioning look.

“Yes, almost…” Kurt replies leaning over and quickly kissing his fiance. “…you have two horrible dark circles under your eyes…” He adds pointing the dark circles under Blaine’s eyes.

“How long have you been awake?” Blaine asks.

“Oh…Just for an hour or so…”Kurt lies, not wanting to worry the man he loves by confessing he just slept for one or two hours. “Are you ready to have breakfast?” He asks trying to change the subject.

Blaine rolls his eyes and just nods. He knows he can’t argue with that. Kurt laughs and suddenly wants to ask Blaine about what they talked the day before, but he’s not exactly sure how to bring the topic up for fear of pushing Blaine too much, but the nagging voice in the back of his head pushes him to speak up. “Ummm, before we get up…Ummm can I ask you something?” He asks looking into hazel eyes.

“Sure…What is it?”

“…Are you still thinking about talking to someone…Ummm about asking for some professional help?” Kurt hesitates.

Sighing Blaine answers a soft “Yep…” He knows Kurt is just concerned, but he doesn’t know if he is ready to take that step quite yet. He just really realized how bad his problem was, is…And he knows he needs help, he’s just not sure if he is comfortable talking to a stranger about the problems that he’s just starting to understand.

“Okay…” Kurt replies showing he’s not entirely  happy about his answer.  

“Babe I…” Blaine trails off.

“Don’t! It’s fine, I’m just insisting because I’m worried, but we’ll get there when you feel ready…” Kurt gives Blaine a reassuring smile.

Blaine opens his mouth to reply but he’s cut off by a knock at their door. Before Kurt can even get up to ask who’s knocking, the door slides open and Kurt runs alarmed to the living room and finds Tina and Artie stepping in.

“What the–” Kurt trails off as a confused smile crosses through his face.

“What’s up guys!?” Artie yells wheeling into the loft.

Blaine emerges from the room with a questioning look and Tina exclaims, “Boo! How are you? We heard what happened yesterday and here we are…How are you feeling!?” She asks already clinging from Blaine’s neck.

“I’m fine Tina…Thanks” Blaine states politely and quickly freeing himself from his friend’s excited embrace. He knows Kurt still feels uncomfortable with Tina’s obnoxious behavior.

“How did you guys find out? I mean…I didn’t text you Artie…” Kurt says looking between his friends, and reaching his fiance’s hand and lacing their fingers. He wasn’t jealous, not really, but he liked to establish some boundaries. After all his high school friend had vapo-rubbed his fiance, and that’s something Kurt still found disturbing.

“Elliott told us…Well, technically he told me and I told Tina…” Artie explains.

“Elliott told you…Why?” Kurt asks confused.

“Yeah, since your birthday we have been chatting a bit. He’s a funny guy, so we’re friends now. Hope you don’t mind…”

“No, not at all…It’s just weird…But anyways, you guys arrived just in time! You haven’t had breakfast, right?” Kurt asks smiling.

Artie and Tina shake their heads at the same time and Kurt claps excitedly. “Perfect! Then please be my guest.” He insists pointing to the table, “Breakfast will be ready in ten minutes” He chirps while his friends and fiance take a seat at the kitchen table.

Twisting her key in the bronze door knob, Santana unlocks the door. She pushes it open and walks into the small apartment followed by Rachel and Quinn. Setting a bag of chinese food on the breakfast bar that poses as a divider between the living room and kitchen, Santana speaks to the two women behind her, “I just can’t believe how much hype it’s already gotten. The place looks great. I knew she could do it.”

“Okay, normally I’d say you’re biased because you’re in love with her, but I have to agree. Brittany’s studio looks great! And even better now that she’s got that place ready and with a long list of students in just a little over a month!” Rachel kicks her shoes off by the front door, wanting to avoid another screaming match with her Latina friend for _‘dragging her dirty hobbit shoes and trying to ruin her carpet.’_

The three women had just arrived back home from Brittany’s grand opening for her dance studio, and all were amazed at how well the tall blonde had pull it all together. “Yeah, the place looks very professional, but still very Brittany.”

“That’s what she was going for. I just can’t believe she pushed me out the door!” Santana pulls out the three styrofoam containers from the brown bag perched on the breakfast bar. Opening each one to look inside it before handing it off to either the blonde or brunette.

After receiving her food, Quinn sits on the couch in the living room. Opening it and sticking a black plastic fork into a piece of orange chicken before raising it up to pop  in her mouth. Swallowing, she licks her lip before saying, “Yeah, well you were trying to lure her into her office for a quicky, Santana.”

“Not a quicky, Quinn, a celebration round.” Santana smirks.

“Yeah, well with the phones ringing off the hook like they were when we were there, she may not be up for any rounds when she gets home. It’s going to be a late night for her there I think, but that’s good for business. She’s bringing in a lot of new students and for a new studio in L.A. that’s big. You should be proud, Santana.” Rachel ends up taking the seat next to Quinn as she picks through her noodles, rice, and broccoli.

“First of all, don’t ever talk about my sex life again, Dwarf! Second of all, I am extremely proud of her! And unlike most of you I never had my doubts that she could achieve this. She’s a genius and an amazing dancer.” Santana makes her way to the kitchen and riffles through the contents inside her refrigerator. Looking between the two options she has inside of the refrigerator to drink. Milk or juice. Shaking her head, _‘I need to get some wine in this place.’_ She grabs the jug of blue Hawaiian Punch and turns back to the kitchen counter. “You guys want a drink?” She yells out so Rachel and Quinn can hear her. “I have…..Juice.” she didn’t miss the muffled giggles from the two people in the living room, wondering how she could even call them friends. After hearing a faint _‘yes’_ said in unison, she pulls down three glasses from the cabinet right about her head in front of her. Pouring some a little juice in each glass, she then twists the blue cap back on the jug. Grabbing the jug by the makeshift handle that comes on it she carries it back to the refrigerator and places it back inside.

Using the skills she picked up back at the spotlight diner, Santana balances the three glasses in one hand, using her other to grab her styrofoam container of bourbon chicken. Walking out of the kitchen and making her way to the living room, she stops in front of Rachel first, her being the closet, and motions for her to grab a glass from her. Santana then shuffles her feet a few steps and stopping in front of Quinn. “Grab a glass, Fabitch.” She smirks.

Quinn rolls her eyes and bites her tongue trying to remind herself she missed the feisty Latina. She takes a sip from the glass before setting it on the end table to the left of her. “Coster Stretchmarks!” The short haired blonde narrows her eyes to the brunette to her left who sits in the black leather chair.

“Why weren’t you this much of a neat freak when you lived with Kurt and I?” Rachel quips before biting down on a piece of broccoli.

Santana opens her mouth to respond but is quickly cut off by Quinn. Sensing the dangerous direction the conversation could take, she quickly changes the topic. “Anyways, why don’t we talk about what song you’re going to sing to Brittany when you propose, since we have sometime alone before she gets back home.”

Santana’s scowl immediately turns into a light smile at the thought at possibly making Brittany her wife. _‘Wife’_ , just the sound of it made her heart beat faster. Clearing her throat, hoping her so called friends didn’t see the rush of emotions that ran over her features at the thought of proposing. “I don’t know what song yet. I just feel like something is missing. I mean this is Brittany, it has to be perfect. We’ve been through so much together. And now we finally got it right and we’re happy. I just want her to be happy and remember this day for the rest of her life because if she says ‘yes’ I know I will.” Santana’s eyes lose focus as she looks out into the distance, her brows scrunched in thought. Thinking back through all the things her and her girlfriend has been through. Other than the long distance issue, which was obviously no longer an issue, the biggest obstacle they had faced together and thankfully got through together, was Santana’s struggle with coming out of the closet.

Letting her eyes drift over the the black and silver picture frame that sits on the entertainment center to the right of the television. It was a picture of Brittany and her from their first day together in New York. In the picture Santana was sitting on a bench looking up to the blonde. Brittany stood behind the Latina with her arms draped over the brunette’s shoulders, with one arm stretched out holding the camera in front of them. They both wore huge smiles as they looked at each other. _‘How could I have ever hid my love for her?’_ Santana questions herself as she continues to stare at the beautiful golden haired woman in the picture. _‘I will never hid her again.’_ She makes herself a silent promise.

“Santana!” The Latina could barely register someone saying her name as she continues to stare at the picture in front of her, trying to count the freckles on her lovers nose to see if the camera caught all of them. She knew exactly how many there were from the numerous times she would watch the blonde sleep and when she wasn’t watching the rise and fall over her chest she was counting the freckles the wisps across her nose.

“Santana!” Rachel screams, effectively pulling Santana from her thoughts.

“Huh?” Santana responds when she finally pulls her eyes away from the photo and back to the two woman sitting cross legged on her couch wearing concerned looks.

“We’ve been talking for the past ten minutes. You weren’t listening to anything we said were you?” Quinn questions as she raises a perfectly manicured eyebrow. Taking the silence as a yes she continues, “Well, we were saying that once everyone has left Britt’s studio you can come in and–”

Santana started to tune the blonde out again as she thinks to herself, _‘Once everyone left?…I’m doing it again…I’m hiding her…”_

“No!” Santana shouts out quickly, interrupting Quinn’s explanation.

Rachel and Quinn look to each other confused before looking back to Santana. “Umm, Santana? No to what?” Rachel speaks softly trying to figure out what was up with her sudden outburst.

“No. Change of plans. I don’t want to do it at Britt’s studio.” Santana shakes her head as she speaks like she is throwing out all thoughts of the original idea. Shifting her eyes between the brown and green ones looking back at her she smiles as she says, “I want to do it out in public, for everyone to see.”

Rachel eyes wide as she chokes on her drink she currently had up near her lips. Quinn being extremely shocked but the more composed of the two speaks up, “Are you trying to embarrass her?”

“What? No!” Santana scrunches her brows and continues trying to explain, “No, think about it, I spent so long hiding my love for her from everyone. Stealing kisses in the locker room when everyone was gone, holding her hand under a napkin. Now we are finally out and together and I want her to know that…I want to forever love her out loud for everyone to see. I want everyone in L.A. to know that I love her and I want her to see that I will never hide her from anyone or anything again. That she is everything to me. What better way to tell her I’m one hundred percent committed to her for life by yelling how much I love her in front of everyone, even strangers.”

Rachel fights back a few tears with a sniff, “Wow, Santana..” she trails off. “So, how are you going to do that exactly?”

Santana smirks as the idea plays through her head. “Oh, no, Gaberry! You’ll have to wait for that…But you can help me picking out the perfect song.”

“You know what, I think I know the perfect song.” Quinn smiles as she starts to sings.

_(Quinn)…I have always been a little shy. I’ve always been the quiet type till now, and I never let my feelings show. I never let anybody know  just how much I was so deep in love .But now that you’re in my arms…_

Recognizing the song Rachel smiles and places her glass on the end table next to her and joins Quinn in singing the chorus. Santana rolls her eyes playfully thinking how predictable the song is.

_(Quinn and Rachel)…I’m gonna stand on a rooftop, climb up a mountaintop. Baby, scream and shout. I wanna sing it on the radio, show it on a video. Baby, leave no doubt. I want the whole world to know just what I’m all about. I love to love you out loud…_

Full of excitement, Rachel bounces up to her feet. Turning to face Quinn she holds out a hand to the green eyed woman who accepts with a smile. The two woman playfully spin around the living room dancing together. Suddenly Rachel tugs on Quinn’s arm causing her to stop.

Dropping down to one knee and faking a proposal, Rachel laughs as Quinn over dramatizes a ‘ _yes!’_. Santana looks between her two best friends as she tries to fight a laugh at their antics. Finally, standing up, deciding to save the performance, Santana starts to sing to surprise the other two woman,

_(Santana)…You keep bringing out the free in me. What you do to my heart just makes me melt, and I don’t think I can resist. But I’ve never been one to kiss and tell. A love this true can’t be subdued, so I’m gonna let out a yell…_

Grabbing Rachel’s hand pulling her up from her knee, Santana spins her around a few times before dipping her down then bringing her back up. Once Rachel was steady back on her feet she let go of her hand and made her way to Quinn. Placing a hand to her waist the two woman playfully dance around as the all start to sing the chorus together.

_(All three girls)…I’m gonna stand on a rooftop, climb up a mountaintop. Baby, scream and shout. I wanna sing it on the radio, show it on a video. Baby, leave no doubt. I want the whole world to know, just what I’m all about. I love to love you out loud…_

Three former Glee kids jump around the living room. Quinn starts to sing louder trying to be heard above the other two voices in the room when Rachel jumps in front of her using her Broadway experience to overpower her.

Thinking to herself that this was her moment to shine, Santana walks over to Rachel and pushes her to the side as she belts out the next line.

_(Santana)…Baby, I want the whole world to see just how good your love looks on me…_

Santana jumps up on the couch as she sings. Walking on the cushions she makes her way from the left side to the right side of the couch before stepping over the armrest and moving to stand on top of the leather chair. Turning to face her friends she sings. Pointing to them for backup, Quinn and Rachel jump up on the couch next to her faking a curtsies as they all sing together.

_(All three girls)…I’m gonna stand on a rooftop, climb up a mountaintop. Baby, scream and shout. I wanna sing it on the radio, show it on a video. Baby, leave no doubt. I want the whole world to know just what I’m all about. I love to love you out loud…_

Santana jumps off the chair and heads toward the kitchen room gaining odd looks from her friends who still stand tall on the top of the couch. Once she steps onto the tile floor of the kitchen she bends down and opens the bottom drawer that holds the potholders and oven mitts. Slipping her hand inside a green quilted oven mitt she pulls out a black velvet box.

_(Santana)…Baby, I love to love you out loud . Yeah, I love to love you out loud…_

Dancing her way from the kitchen back to the living room, she stops in front of Quinn and Rachel on the couch. The blonde and brunette look down to the Latina and watch as she gets down on one knee. Quinn jumps off the couch and stand in front of Santana posing as Brittany as Santana rehearses the four words she would say to her blonde. Flipping open the velvet box showing off the sparkling diamond ring as she says, “Brittany, will you marry me?”

Quinn gasps at the sight of seeing the ring for the first time. “Oh my God, Santana the ring is beautiful!”

Quickly jumping off the couch Rachel leans over to get a good look at the ring too. “Oh, this is going to be perfect! Please tell me you will let us be there when you do it!” Santana chuckles at her friends feeling good about her choice of ring.

In a moment of confusion Rachel asks, “Wait where did you have this hidden?”

“In the kitchen inside an oven mit.” Santana smiles, proud of herself for her genius hiding spot.

“And you don’t think Brittany will find it there?” Quinn questions, her eyes never leaving the shine of the ring in front of her.

Santana smiles softly, “Of course not. After Brittany’s parents had to remodel their whole kitchen because Britt accidentally set the pot holders on fire by placing them on the back burners of the stove when she was making mac and cheese, she has never used a stove or oven since. So she won’t ever be in that draw.”

“Well it really is a beautiful ring, Santana.” Rachel smiles, taking a seat on the couch. “I can’t wait to see her face!”

“Watch it, Hobbit, I haven’t exactly said you were invited yet.” Santana flashes her award winning smirk to her friends before looking back down at the ring in her hand. Running a thumb over the stone she sighs, “God, I just hope she says yes.”

Standing outside looking up at the bright blue and yellow banner that reads Pierce-Lopez Academy of Dance–Grand Opening, Brittany tilts her head to the side as a smile spreads across her lips. She did it, she owns her own dance studio.

She had just gotten Santana, Quinn, and Rachel to finally leave. Not that she didn’t want them there, but the fun cutting the ribbon part of the grand opening was over and now Brittany was just greeting and shaking hands with the mothers and fathers bringing their kids in to meet her and sign up for lessons. So she shooed them away for something more interesting to do on _‘Quinn’s vacation’_.

Saying Brittany was surprised at how many parents and children showed up would be an understatement. She was mainly hoping to fill two or three classes of ten to fifteen at the most, but the signup sheet was starting to get longer and longer as the day dragged on. Brittany even had quite a few people recognize her from Mercedes tour and ask her for an autograph. She simply smiled and said thank you before signing a piece of paper for them.

“Hi, I’m sorry but…Are you Mrs. Pierce-Lopez?” A short haired brunette asks her, bringing her back from her thoughts.

Brittany looks towards her shyly, “Oh, it’s just Ms. Pierce, but yes I’m Brittany, nice to meet you.” The tall dancer extends her hand to the other woman who excitedly shakes it in return.

“Oh, my bad. I’m sorry I guess I just assumed because of the name.” The shorter woman apologizes, “My name is Kennedy, and this here is Carter.” Brittany looks down and notices a small dark haired boy she didn’t see before.

Crouching down to his level she speaks softly, “Hi there, My name is Brittany. It’s nice to meet you.”

Carter blushes bashfully before hiding his face behind his mothers leg. “He’s a little shy.” Kennedy chuckles. “Anyways, I wanted to speak to you because I saw in your flyer that you had an age bracket of five and up.” Brittany shoots one me smile and a wink to the young boy before standing up, dusting her hands on her turquoise yoga pants, and turning her attention back to the boys mother. “I was wondering if there was any way you could make an exception. I saw you on the DVD of Mercedes Jones tour and you are an amazing dancer. Carter here is only three, but he loves hip-hop dance. He knows every routine you did in that tour by heart. It would be an honor if he could learn from someone so talented. He really does have a gift and is more mature than most four year old’s.”

Brittany looks back down to the small boy and sees his big brown eyes staring back at her. Feeling slightly guilty she informs the woman, “I’m so sorry, but I don’t have a group class for kids under five. As I’m sure you can understand, even though I’m sure Carter here is more mature than most three and four year old’s, not every young kid is. And since the studio is just opening I don’t have enough instructors to offer a class for kids that young. It would require more than one teacher in the class to keep a bunch of three and four year old’s focused and I just don’t have to money to pay for more instructors yet. It’s only two more years and he can join the five to seven class we offer.” Brittany can’t help but feel the clench in her heart at the disappointed look she received after answering the women’s question. Even though she wished that in a few years her studio may become big enough to offer classes to a wider range of children she had a valid reason not to at the moment. Children were difficult to keep focus and in order to pay another instructor to help her out would cost her money she didn’t have yet.

Kennedy ran her hands through her son’s wild curly hair before looking back up to the blonde dancer, “It’s okay, we understand.” She gives Brittany a small smile before dropping her hand to Carter’s back, ushering him to turn, “Come on baby, we can try back in a couple years, okay?” She tries to sound chipper as to not upset the young boy. Kennedy and Carter start to walk away.

Brittany watches as the small boy looks at his feet, dragging them as he walks next to his mom. She feels horrible. “Wait!” she yells out and before she even knows what she is doing she jogs over to the two person family. “Wait.” She says again, softer this time, now standing in front of them. “What if I give him one on one lessons with me?” She wasn’t sure exactly how she was going to make it work since how as the day dragged on her list of classes were growing and so far, other than herself, she has only hired two other dance instructors. Meaning she would be working almost every class that would have anywhere between fifteen to twenty people in each class, offering four, two hour classes a day for five days a week. And now here she was offering her first private lesson to a three year old boy, without knowing any of his dancing abilities besides what his mother has told her. Something about the little boy tugged at her heart. She remembers her mother fighting for her to get into dance classes before she could even walk, who was she to deny another child that privilege. For all she knew she could help him become the next famous hip-hop dancer, like, Shane Sparks. Running her fingers through her long blonde hair, she shakes her head to shift her bangs out of her eyes, “Twice a week, I can see him for two hours, twice a week. But since it’s one on one, the classes will be a bit more expensive than the group classes. Then once he turns five he can join the group classes and compete with the other kids.”

Kennedy picks up her son and runs over to Brittany pulling her into a bone crushing group hug, “Thank you! Thank you! I promise you won’t regret it. He is a very talented little boy, I swear I’m not just saying that because I’m his mother.”

Brittany laughs as she steps back from the women’s embrace. “I trust you.” She says truthfully. Just then one of the other dance instructors runs out of the building, looking both ways before he spots Brittany. “Miss. Pierce!”

Squinting her eyes to shield them from the suns rays as she turns to see Jacob in a pair of grey cut of sweats and a grey white beater, running in her direction, stopping in front of her. “Brittany, Jacob. Call me Brittany, please.”

“Right.” He ducks his head bashfully. He’s only be officially working with Brittany for a week now, trying to learn the ropes of things before the grand opening.

“Did you need something?” Brittany smiles to him.

“Oh, yes, Emily said you had a phone call.”

Looking back over her shoulder to see Kennedy still standing there with Carter clutching to her neck with his tiny arms, she responds to Jacob, “Right, okay, I’ll be right there.” Turning back to Kennedy she then says, “If you will just follow Jacob inside and ask Emily for a signup form. She will as his age group, just tell her _‘Britt’_ sent you in for a one on one lesson twice a week on Wednesday’s and Friday’s. We will figure out the time later, I’ll give you a call and we will work something out.” She turns back to Jacob, “Make sure Emily doesn’t give them a hard time and that she knows I approved this.” Jacob just nods his head in confirmation. “It was really nice to meet both of you.” Looking over to Carter she speaks softly, “And I can’t wait to work with you little man.” He sends her his first genuine smile as he lifts his head up from his mother’s chest.

“What do you say, Carter?” Kennedy asks her son.

“Thank you…” He blushes as Brittany sends him a wink before turning and jogging back into the building.

Once walks through the front door she makes her way over to the large front desk in the middle of the studios entrance. “Jacob said I had a phone call?” Brittany asks Emily who is taking back a few forms from a couple standing in front of her with their daughter who had to be no older than 12.

“Yes, line three, and surprisingly it’s not Santana this time.” The other blonde jokes.

Smiling at the mention of her girlfriend’s name Brittany laughs at Emily before pushing the line three button and bringing the black device to her ear. “Pierce-Lopez academy of dance, this is Brittany.” The tall dancer who can’t help but smile a giddy smile at her professional tone.

 _“Pierce-Lopez? You and Santana didn’t go and get hitched without inviting me did you?”_ Mike’s voice is heard through the phone.

Recognizing her long time friend’s voice she quickly responds, “Mike! Hey, and no we didn’t get married.” She laughs, “I named the studio P.L.A.D. because technically Santana owns about 30 percent of the studio too, and whether she likes to admit it or not she did a lot to help me get this place started. But she’s too modest to take any credit that’s why I kept the name from her till today.”

_“Ah, Well I that’s why I was calling actually. To congratulate you on the opening of the studio!”_

“Thank you, Mike!” Brittany leans up against the wall behind her still clutching the phone to her ear, lifting the chord every time Emily has to walk around the desk. “This place is amazing. Better than I ever thought I could do.” She goes on to describe the place to him. Explaining how it has a large front room with windows lining the front walls and padded benches attached to the walls underneath the windows. A large curved desk sitting in the middle of the room, with a painted wooden front with blue letters that read P.L.A.D. written on it with a stainless steel counter top. The front room has a greyish-blue carpeting that leads down two separate hallways off to each side of the room. Down one hallway is her office, two large locker rooms, one for boys, and one for girls; and three decent sized studio rooms. Down the other hallway to the left are five more studio rooms. Each studio room has brand new Marley flooring covering the old wood, large mirrors lining the front of the rooms, and a wooden bar attached to each mirror. Behind the mirrors of three out of the eight studio rooms is a room attached by a door off the the left of the room where parents can sit and watch their kids dance through the two way mirror. The place was far bigger than anything she could of ever dreamed of but here she is standing inside of the large building in uptown L.A.; a building that has her name on it.

 _“Wow, Brittany, that place sounds amazing! I’ll have to come and see it some time soon. Matter of fact I could always come down and teach a seminar class with you. Get your studio’s name out there more and get some more recognition for the amazing dancer you are. Not that you need it from what I hear Mercedes’ tour left you standing tall.”_ Mike brags causing the blonde to blush and duck her head as if she is hiding from him even though he can’t see her through the phone.

“It would be amazing to have you come teach a class here. I’d be like old times! Except I have a feeling some of these kids would be easier to teach the the two-left-footed people we tried to teach at McKinley.” The blonde laughs into the phone’s speaker, “You’ll visit soon right?” she questions her former dancing buddy.

_“Yeah, probably some time around October, I still have some other projects to finish, but I definitely make it there, Britt!”_

Brittany claps excitedly rocking back and forth from her heels to her toes, “Awesome! October is one of my favorite months! We could dance thriller and eat candies while Lord Tubbington rewatches the first season of American Horror Story.”

Mike laughs once more, missing the blonde’s wild imagination, _“Sure! Sounds great! Well I know you’re a busy woman now, so I’ll let you go but, I’ll see you guys soon!”_

“Yay!” Brittany says a bit too loud, causing the lobby full of potential students and their parents and guardians to look at her. Smile bashfully to them she says a quick goodbye to Mike, before returning back to getting the flock of people walking through her studio doors.

Breakfast turned into lunch and lunch turn into dinner, and before they knew it Artie and Tina had spent the whole day at the loft with Kurt and Blaine. They have almost finished the grilled chicken with roasted kale that Tina and Kurt prepared when Kurt notices Blaine playing around with the food.

“Honey you have to eat…” Kurt hags, using his bossy voice.

“It’s not that I’m trying not to eat Kurt, I’m just full.” Blaine quips, a bit irritated.

“Yeah, don’t be so hard on him Kurt. He’s just started recovering. He did great with breakfast and lunch. He’s allowed to leave some of his dinner…” Artie interferes softly, starting to feel bad for the constant hounding Blaine has been receiving all day. Kurt didn’t mean to be coming across as suffocating. He was just worried and scared.

Tina, with her mouth still full, pipes in, “Yes, Kurt, My bo–I mean Blaine, starved himself for months! Don’t expect him to eat that much…”

Blaine rolls his eyes, because he suddenly feels like a five year old who’s being scolded and ignored by the adults. “Guys! I have an eating disorder, but I’m not deaf…”

Tina and Artie look at each other and then lower their gazes a bit ashamed. Kurt looks over at Blaine and trying to sound less bossy he adds, “Okay…Leave the potatoes, but at least eat the rest of your tomatoes…”

“Fine!” Blaine snaps, his voice sounding not so enthusiastic.

Artie, noticing the new awkwardness in the air, quickly adds, “Anyways, what about the wedding guys? Is everything ready?”

With that said, the mood of the two boys immediately improves and Kurt stands up and while picking up the dirty dishes he shares some details with his friends “We have almost all the details ready, there are some things here and there that still need some planning, but everything is going well…”

“And the bachelor’s party? Because you are going to have one right?” Tina asks, helping Kurt with the dishes.

Blaine immediately gets excited and starts to bounce in his seat. “Of course we’re having one! We can’t tell you much about it because it’s a surprise!” He exclaims, clearly thrilled by the upcoming party.

Kurt quickly glances at his fiance and smiles at him. His enthusiasm about the bachelor’s party is contagious. “It’s a surprise, but maybe we could share some details with them don’t you think?” He asks, as he places his hands on Blaine’s shoulders.

Blaine raises his right hand and strokes his fiance’s hand with a sweet touch. “I don’t know…you think they deserve to have the exclusive?” Blaine asks teasing.

Kurt laughs and follows along with Blaine’s silly joke, “Yeah, you’re right…I’m not sure…”

“Come on guys! We won’t tell anybody!” Artie exclaims trying to convince them.

“Yes, guys! We won’t tell anybody! We swear!”

Kurt and Blaine look at each other in complicity. They have been planning this secret Bachelor’s party for some time and they want to keep it a secret, but they are also eager to share some details. Blaine raises a questioning look to Kurt and the blue-eyed man pouts, not sure of what to do. They know Tina is going to tell Quinn, who’s going to tell Puck, and probably Santana and Brittany. And there was a huge chance that the Latina would tell Rachel, who in turn would take care to tell everyone else.

“They are going to find out soon…” Kurt tells his fiance. Blaine lets him know that he can go on and share some details with them.

“Okay…We’ll share something, but promise us you’ll try to keep your mouths shut!” Kurt demands while taking a seat next to Blaine.

“Promise!” Both Tina and Artie quickly exclaim.

“For starters…You need to know that it’s going to be real soon, like almost in a month…To be precise, on the last weekend of August…”

“But–” Tina starts to complain, but Kurt quickly interrupts. “I know it’s too soon, but our NYADA exams are a couple of weeks before the wedding and ever since my promotion, work just keeps getting crazier, I’ll need the time before the wedding to get everything ready for me to take two weeks off for the honeymoon, that’s why we decided to have it next month…”

“That sounds clever” Artie comments.

“And where is it going to be?” Tina questions, bouncing in her seat, wanting to get as much information as she can.

Blaine smiles playfully. “No, Tina! I’m sorry, but you’ll have to wait until you get your invitation. All you need to know is that it’s going to be big!”

Kurt smiles while clapping his hands excitedly. “And unforgettable!”

Blaine turns his head slightly to the right to see his fiance, and with a huge smile he teases, “Yes…Unforgettable.”

Artie and Tina notice the way the guys are looking at each other and Artie says, “Well…Ummm…I think that’s our cue to go. It’s getting late anyways…”

“You don’t want to stay and watch a movie or something?” Kurt asks politely, finally tearing his eyes away from his lover’s.

“No, we’ve been here all day. I think you guys need some time alone. We’ll come back tomorrow…Tina is staying all week so we can go to a museum or something.” Artie tells his friends already wheeling towards the door.

“Yeah…I want to know more places around here. Maybe you could take me to Vogue Kurt? I want to see your office!” Tina demands while helping Artie wheel out of the loft.

“Of course! We can go tomorrow and have some fun!”

“Sounds like a plan!” Artie quips smiling at his friends and waving goodbye. “See you guys then tomorrow! I’m glad you’re alive, Blaine!”

Blaine laughs as he quickly says goodbye to his friends. “Thank you guys so much for coming…It meant a lot…”

“Bye, Boo! Bye, Kurt!” Tina shouts as she quickly kisses them both on the cheek goodbye.

When Artie and Tina are gone, Kurt exhales relieved and takes a seat at the couch. Blaine joins and asks, “What if we change into our pj’s again and just go to bed…I’m a bit tired.”

“That’s exactly what I was about to suggest.” Kurt rushes, already standing up and walking to the room.

Once they are cuddle up all lovely in bed and facing each other, Blaine whispers, “I love you so much.” Kurt just smiles as his fiance continues, “I know I’m always repeating the same thing, but I just want to make sure you know it for sure and…You know what?” Kurt shakes his head, encouraging Blaine to continue. “I can’t wait to make you my husband.”

“Oh God! Same here!” Kurt says as he slowly leans over to kiss him. “And…I don’t mind you repeating me those words because you know what?” He asks breathing a smile “I love you too and I’m really, really glad you’re okay. It scared the crap out of me seeing you in that hospital bed!”

Hearing that coming out from Kurt’s mouth makes Blaine realize that he doesn’t need to get better just for himself, but for his soon-to-be husband too. _‘I’ll look for someone to help me.’_ He thinks to himself as he kisses Kurt’s forehead. “I’m going to be okay, I promise.”

“I’m sure you will…” Kurt tells his fiance with a huge smile on his face. “Because I’ll take care of you.”

Blaine smiles and looks into deep blue eyes, his favorite color, wondering again how he was so lucky to find this man so soon in this life.

It’s early and the sun is just starting to warm the L.A. cold morning breeze when Rachel and Quinn arrive to LAX airport. The brunette looks at the names of the streets, trying to follow the instructions that her boyfriend so kindly suggested when she told him she had to go to the airport to pick up Mercedes.

 “Are you sure Wes gave you the right instructions? I mean, I saw a parking lot when we turned on Vicksburg Avenue…I know it’s far, but we could park there and walk…” Quinn suggests.

“Don’t worry Quinn, Wes knows this place like the back of his hand. He told me to park the car inside…At the parking six, between terminal five and six.” Rachel says while turning the car to the right to take the World Way street.

“Okay…He’s the expert…” Quinn replies as she slowly turns around to keep admiring the orange city skyline.

They find the P-6 parking lot and immediately Rachel looks for an empty spot. When the girls climb out of the car, the sun is already up and both can’t help but look up and smile. Santana couldn’t have asked for a better weather. Apparently the universe was conspiring to make this day perfect.

“Sunny and beautiful…” Quinn states matter of factly.

“A perfect proposal day…”

“Indeed!” Quinn chirps with a smile as the two friends make their way into the LAX terminal 5, where Mercedes will be arriving shortly.

Quinn looks up at the arrival screens and after a couple of minutes she murmurs, “I think her flight just landed…” Rachel looks up too and checking the flight number she had on her phone.

“Yeah…Now we just wait for her–” Rachel is saying when her phone pings announcing she just got a new text message. “That’s must be Mercedes…” She adds as she reads the text. “Yep, that’s Mercedes. She says she just landed and she’ll be here any minute now.”

“Okay…” Quinn replies as she takes out her phone and checks her email. “Tina emailed me and she’s not coming. She’s still with Kurt and Blaine.”

“She’s in New York? Why? We told all the girls this was an emergency!” Rachel replies surprised.

Quinn frowns getting a bit confused. “You don’t know what happened yesterday?” She asks intrigued.

“No…What happened?” Rachel asks confused.

Quinn hesitates for a minute because she knows she wasn’t supposed to be sharing that information, but Rachel was one of Kurt’s best friends so she didn’t understand why Rachel didn’t know. “Don’t tell Kurt I told you, okay?”

Rachel nods and gives her friend an anxious look because she’s now very curious to know what happened.

“Blaine was in the hospital…” Quinn explains.

“What!? Why!?” Rachel asks alarmed and raising her voice causing some people who were just passing by to turn around and look at the girls.

“Apparently he passed out when they were at the gym. Tina told me…” Quinn says and then looks around nervously as she whispers, “That-that he starved himself for a couple of months and was obsessed with the way he looked. Which obviously explains why he looked so skinny at Kurt’s party. I knew he looked different, but I thought it was just him doing some exercise. I never thought he had a serious problem. Apparently, Kurt was with him when everything happened so he’s fine now, but Tina says that Artie said that Elliott said that Kurt was super scared. According to Tina, Artie told her that Elliott told him that Kurt sounded broken when he talked to Elliott…” Quinn says.

“Oh my God! Poor Kurt! Why didn’t he call me!? I’m his best friend! And Blaine…What was he thinking! He could have killed himself!” Rachel immediately exclaims.

“I know, Tina says that Blaine still looks tired, but that yesterday, when she and Artie went to visit them. Kurt looked dreadful and couldn’t keep his eyes away from Blaine…” Quinn adds.

“That’s normal, I mean…they are getting married, of course Kurt was worried. I can’t imagine what he felt when he took Blaine to the hospital…” Rachel says covering her mouth as she tries to hide her worried face.

“Yeah, that’s why Tina decided to stay. She says that they both need some moral support right now…”

Rachel nods. “Yeah…” As she stays silent for a couple of minutes as a few thoughts cross her mind. “You know? I still find hard to believe that you’re actually best friends with Tina now…Sorry Quinn, but it’s weird.”

“As weird as our friendship Rachel.” Quinn teases with a smirk.

“Yeah, you’re ri–” Rachel is saying when a familiar voice yells from afar interrupting her, “Ladies!”

Rachel and Quinn turn around and watch Mercedes waving at them. “Oh Look! Mercedes’ is here!” Rachel exclaims, smiling and waving at the soul diva who’s making her way towards them.

Mercedes reaches her friends and hugs them both. Quinn and Rachel smile at her as they hug back their former Glee Club friend. Quinn steps back from the hug and looks at the huge hat and sunglasses that her friend is wearing and unable to keep her questions to herself she speaks up, “Why are you wearing that?”

Mercedes snapping her finger and using her inner Diva, replies, “Girl! We’re in L.A.! Of course this beautiful hat is to avoid the paps!”

Quinn and Rachel burst into laughter as Mercedes removes her sunglasses. Looking around the Diva notices that there’s a missing person. “So, where’s Tina?”

“She’s not coming. She’s at New York visiting Kurt and Blaine.” Quinn explains.

“But this is an emergency I mean a proposal! She should be here! She’s one of us!” Mercedes complains. “She can’t leave her friends alone in this very important moment!”

Rachel and Quinn look at each other because it’ clear that Mercedes doesn’t know what happened with Blaine either. Mercedes notices the game of looks going on between Rachel and Quinn and she asks, “What is it?”

Rachel looks at Quinn and hesitantly says, “We can tell her don’t you think? It’s not like we weren’t all going to find out eventually.”

“What happened!?” Mercedes asks alarmed.

Quinn, taking a deep breath says, “Blaine was in the hospital yesterday.”

“What!!!!?” Mercedes yells as Rachel and Quinn start to shush her. Mercedes shrugs  and whispers, “Sorry…Is he okay?”

“Yeah, he’s fine now…” Rachel adds.

“But what happened?” Mercedes asks again with wide eyes.

“We’ll tell you all about it on our way to Rachel’s place. Remember we’re here to help Santana with the proposal…” Quinn says. “And we have to be there” She pauses to look at her watch, “Umm… Now!”

Mercedes nods as the three friends make their way to the parking lot to get Rachel’s car and drive all the way back to her place. Mercedes still needs to drop off her bags and the three girls need to get ready for Santana’s big proposal that the Latina still hadn’t given them all the information on yet.

Santana sits on the grey couch with her feet propped up on the black coffee table in front of her. She fidgets in her seat as she nervously taps the black screen of her phone, willing it to light up. If it wasn’t for the blonde whose head lays on her lap, she would probably be doing laps around her living room as she waited for the vital phone call. Santana is so far gone in her thoughts that if it wasn’t for the vibration reverberating from the blonde’s throat onto the caramelized skin of Santana’s thigh, she would of missed the fact Brittany was speaking to her all together.

“You should’ve seen this kid though, San. I don’t know what it is about him but I just couldn’t let them walk away. His mother, Kennedy, that was her name, that’s right! She said that he’s memorized all the routines I did on Cedes’ tour. I’m kind of really excited to work with him and see if he’s as good as she says he is.” Brittany rolls onto her back looking up to the Latina, her head still on Santana’s lap as she feels the shaking of her girlfriends leg. “Are you okay, San?”

Santana continues to stare blankly at her phone while biting the inside of her lip. “San?” Brittany tries again with no avail.

Suddenly, Santana’s phone lights up with the name Hobbit across the screen. Sitting up quickly Santana grabs at her phone accidentally jostling Brittany in the process. “Hello?” Santana answers quickly.

Brittany lifts her head up from her girlfriends lap, looking intently at her as she speaks to someone on the other side of the phone line.

“Wow, Really? Mercedes is here?” Santana fakes surprise when Rachel tells her they just left her house after dropping off Mercedes’ bags. “I’m so surprised by that news!” Santana says a little too loudly making sure Brittany can hear every word she is saying.

“ _Seriously, Santana? How are you an actress? Shut up, you’re being weird. Just meet us at the restaurant, okay?”_

Santana ignores Rachel’s comment and goes along with their theatrics since Brittany is sitting beside her, “Oh, Colori Kitchen? Mind if we join you girls?” She pauses as if she letting Rachel respond even though the other line is silent, before continuing, “Okay, awesome. We will meet you there.”

 _“Call me Hobbit or something Santana, Brittany is going to see right through you.”_ Rachel says to Santana trying to cover up for her obviousness.

“Shut up, Dwarf I know where it is. We will meet you guys there.” Santana quips up her best bitch voice before hanging up and looking towards Brittany. “Mercedes is in L.A.! Her, Rachel, and Quinn are going out to dinner and want us to join.”

Brittany jumps up from the couch with a wide smile, “Okay! Let me change real quick.” She looks down at her yoga pants and oversized pink sweater hanging off one shoulder.

Getting anxious, Santana stands up from the couch and steps in front of the tall blonde. “Wait.” Stopping in her tracks, Brittany looks to Santana quizzically. “We aren’t going anywhere overly fancy.” Staring into blue eyes she brings a tanned hand up to brush a blonde strand away from her lovers face, “And you already look so beautiful.” Brittany’s cheeks flourish as the tips of her ears turn a bright red. She wonders how after all these years Santana still manages to make her feel like she is still fifteen, but she sure wasn’t complaining.

“Okay.” The taller woman wets her lips before continuing, “Then I guess I’m ready.”

The two women slip into a cab and travel downtown to Colori Kitchen. Santana steps out first, holding the door open for Brittany as she steps out and stands beside her girlfriend. The Latina stands there and watches as the blonde looks up and realizes where they are.

“San! We’re at Colori Kitchen. I’ve always wanted to come here, but you always said it was a hole in the wall.” Brittany looks over to the brunette, “What changed your mind?”

Still trying to hide her plan Santana shrugs, “I didn’t. Mercedes and Quinn wanted to come here and since it’s their vacation I guess I don’t have a say so.”

Brittany scrunches her brows in confusion. Normally, Santana would have no problem telling Quinn or Mercedes no. She knew Santana better than anyone and part of her knew that this was really Santana’s idea. Smiling and going along with her girlfriend’s plan, Brittany grabs Santana’s hand. “Oh, Okay.” She says simply as she tugs on her hand pulling her inside the restaurant. “This place is nicer than I expected.” Brittany smiles when they walk through the doors.

As they walk further inside Brittany is the first to spot the table in the back where their friends are gathered. Letting go of Santana’s hand she runs over to the table, “Mercedes!” Drawing the diva into a hug her eyes widen as Mercedes squeezes her a little harder. “Umm, Mercedes.” Brittany taps her on the shoulder causing Mercedes to laugh and take a step back.

“How are you girl!? It’s so strange going from seeing you almost everyday when we were on tour to now not having seen you in months!”

“I know!” Brittany smiles while agreeing. Stepping over to where Rachel and Quinn stand, she gives them both a quick hug before sitting down at the table. Looking over her shoulder, she sees Santana still standing in the same spot beside the table. “San? You going to sit down?”

Quinn looks up to Santana and sees the nervous look on her face. “Yeah, Santana. Sit down.” She says sternly with a pointed look.

Taking a deep breath and swallowing thickly Santana takes a seat next to her girlfriend, sending her a forced smile trying to hide her rising nerves.

The group of friends idly chat as they wait for their waiter to come take their order. Once the waitress shows up she makes her rounds across the table asking each girl what they would like to eat ending with Santana who just settles with ordering a glass of ice water.

“San, you’re not eating…?” Brittany asks starting to really get concerned with her girlfriend’s behavior. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Yeah.” Santana’s eyes shift, looking everywhere but at the beautiful blonde sitting next to her with a delicate pale hand pressed to her thigh. Feeling like someone turned the heat on in the restaurant, Santana takes a large gulp of her ice water the moment the waiter set the glass in front of her.

Rachel, Quinn, and Mercedes all look at each other with concern for their friend. Santana has seemed calm and collected all week when they talked about the proposal, but her she was sitting in her seat practically dripping sweat and fidgeting. Taking initiative Quinn stands up, “I’m going to the restroom.” She looks up towards Santana, “San, care to join?” Santana goes to shake her head ‘ _No’,_ but is quickly cut off by the former Cheerio’s hand on her arm. Smiling, Quinn looks back to the table, “We’ll be right back.”

Quinn pushes Santana into the bathroom locking the door behind them to make sure no one could interrupt. “What the hell is wrong with you? You’re acting too strange!” Quinn scolds her friend who’s knuckles were now turning white with how hard she is grabbing the sink.

“I’m really nervous, Q.” Turning around to face the short haired blonde she continues, “I don’t think I’ve ever been this nervous in my life. Oh my God.” Santana brings a hand up to her chest as her breathing starts to quicken, “What if she says no? Then what happens? I can’t lose her Quinn. I will–” Santana is quickly cut off by the sting of Quinn’s hand coming in contact with her face. Bringing a hand up to a now red cheek, Santana looks up to Quinn between her long raven hair. Taking a deep breath she says, “Thank you.” Exhaling she continues, “I really needed that.”

Quinn smirks, “Anytime.” The blonde reaches over and grabs a handful of paper towel. Stepping around the Latina, she turns the faucet on and gets the paper towels damp before turning back to face Santana. Holding out the wad of paper towels, Santana grabs them and presses it to her cheek to relieve the sting. “Just calm down. Deep breaths. You have nothing to worry about, Santana. Brittany loves you and you know that.”

Unable to find her voice the brunette just nods her head.

“You good now?” Quinn lifts an eyebrow.

“Yeah.” Santana presses her lips in a tight line. Turning around she throws the paper towels in the trash can before looking into the mirror. The red mark was almost gone. Straightening out her dress, she flips a few strands of extensions over her shoulder before walking towards the door that Quinn has held out for her.

Brittany welcomes her girlfriend back to the table with a smile and a kiss to her still slightly red cheek. Santana wasn’t sure if she knew what when on in the bathroom and just chose not to say anything or if she is clueless and just being affectionate.

Their food is served shortly after the two former Cheerios came back to the table. After enjoying their lunches Quinn kicks Santana’s shin under the table prompting her to speak up.

“Hey,” Santana starts out gaining everyone’s attention, “Since you guys are here and we’re all free, why don’t we all go visit a few things. You know the typical L.A. tour.”

“But they’ve been to L.A. before?” Brittany asks causing Santana’s face to drop.

“Yeah, but you can never see the Hollywood sign too many times. Isn’t that right Santana?” Mercedes chirps in saving them.

Santana nods her head, “Oh, yeah. Definitely. Britt loves that stuff anyways, don’t you babe?”

Brittany’s smile widens, “Of course, San, you know that. I love seeing all the touristy stuff. Even if we aren’t tourists, we can still pretend, right?”

Looking at her girlfriend with loving eyes Santana smiles to the blonde, “Of course, Britt.”

Santana pays the bill and the group of friends make their way out of the restaurant and into a black SUV that was waiting outside for them. “Where did this come from?” Brittany questions.

Looking over to Rachel in a slight panic, Santana lifts both brows asking the same question. “Oh, I’m a star now. I can’t ride in those filthy taxis. They’re full of germs and they could mess with my vocal chords. So the network provides me with transportation.”

Brittany leans over and not so quietly whispers to Santana, “No matter how famous you get, please don’t end up as stuck up as her.” Santana sucks her lips between her teeth to keep herself from laughing as she sends a nod in response to Brittany.

Rachel narrows her eyes at Santana for making her lie and cover up the fact that Santana had in fact provided the transportation without thinking up a better lie. Or at least so Rachel thought, not knowing that Rachel’s over dramatics was her cover up all along.

Settling in comfortably in the large SUV the five girls talk and laugh as they make their way to each stop. First visiting the Hollywood sign as promised, followed by the Hollywood Walk of Fame, and the Santa Monica Pier.

The L.A. Sun is starting to lower itself in the sky as they reach their last destination, the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Garden.

They walk down a paved concrete road that weaves its way through purple, white, and green colored trees. Waterfalls trickle over large and small rocks off to the left of the path as the girls make their way through the park colorful canvas. Santana laces her fingers with the tall blonde next to her as Rachel, Quinn, and Mercedes fall a few steps behind them.

Looking around, Brittany smiles as she runs her hands through the fine leaves of the colorful bushes along left side of the pathway. “It’s really pretty here.” She says as she looks to the right, smiling at her girlfriend who softly returns the smile. “How come we haven’t been here before? It’s romantic.” Brittany grins as she playfully bumps shoulders with the Latina.

Santana shrugs a shoulder as she looks away from the blonde while mumbling, “I don’t know. But I’m glad you like it.” She stares at the pattern the vines create as they weave their way up a tree’s trunk. She wanted to see the look on Brittany’s face; to see the sparkle in her eyes, the light pink in her cheeks, and the curve of her smile, but she could bring herself to look back up. The tall beautiful woman next to her knows her better than she knows herself. She is afraid that if she looks back up to those blue eyes, they will read right through her calm facade, just like she always does. Santana wasn’t sure how Brittany did it, but one look at her and she could figure her out like the easiest puzzle. She loved that about Brittany, but she needed the blonde to not figure her out just yet.

Santana knew what was about to happen. What she was about to do. Biting her bottom lip as she plays over her plan in her mind, She takes a couple deep breaths trying to calm herself and pull herself together. Finally feeling confident enough, she looks back over to Brittany to see her looking towards a small pond.

“Oh! San come on, I wanna see if there are any fish in there!” Brittany exclaims excitedly.

Grinning widely at the childlike blonde, Santana reluctantly lets go of Brittany’s hand. “You go ahead, Britt, I’ll meet you over there in a second.” She watches as Brittany bounces her way over to the small pound making faces into the reflection of the water. Looking over her shoulder, Santana makes eye contact with Rachel, raising her eyebrows at her then pointing with her eyes at Brittany.

Rachel frowns and raises a questioning brow. Santana rolls her eyes and in that moment the former Broadway star puts the pieces together and opens her eyes widely. Santana chuckles as Rachel gives her a discreet thumbs up.

Rachel turns and reaches for Mercedes arm, tugging on it and pulling her away from her conversation with Quinn. “Come on, girls! it’s time!” she says in a loud whisper, barely containing her excitement.

“Time for what?” Mercedes asks distracted by the subject change.

Rachel laughs and looking over at Brittany; she whispers, “For the big event…”

Mercedes lets out a quiet “oh” as the three friends look at each other trying to hide their growing smiles. Mercedes, Quinn and Rachel walk over to Brittany who is completely oblivious to the sudden commotion happening in the park.

Santana, who’s watching her friends from afar, smiles. Brittany points as she seems to be explaining something to Mercedes and Rachel who are laughing along with the blonde. The picture couldn’t be more perfect. Taking a deep breath, Santana lets herself get lost in the image of the tall blonde smiling with her friends, her long blonde hair blowing along with the breeze. She is finally brought from her thoughts when Quinn steps up beside her. Reluctantly tearing her eyes away from her girlfriend; _girlfriend_ , she hoped this would be the last time she used that word to describe the blonde, she looks to Quinn. Taking a shaky hand, she runs it through her dark hair.

“You know you have no reason to be nervous, right?” Quinn asks. She knows her friend too well to know she’s probably having a mental breakdown. Unable to come up with a valid argument but still unable to call her nerves, Santana presses her lips together and nods. “Seriously, Santana. This place is beautiful. She looks like shes enjoying it.” They both look out towards Brittany who is clapping then pointing at the Koi fish flipping and splashing in the water in front of her. Quinn leans her shoulder into Santana and whispers to her with a smile, “Go get your wife, Santana.”

A smile immediately spreads across Santana’s features after hearing the word ‘ _wife’_  slip from her friends lips. “Yeah.” She quietly says with a small smile.

With one last smile sent Santana’s way Quinn walks over towards the pound and joins her friends. Quinn points into the distance, there’s a white wooden bridge that curves with a high arch, stretching over a small body of water. Brittany grabs Mercedes’ arm and begin to pull her over the bridge with Rachel and Quinn laughing and running behind them. She is having such a good time with her friends, catching up and enjoying the beautiful scenery that she has yet to realize Santana was no longer standing next to her. As they walk the pathway starts to narrow before coming to an end in front of a wooden bridge.

“Oh, look at the duck!” Brittany continues to drag Mercedes over the bridge. “Come on Quinn, Rachel, we gotta feed the duck!” She calls over her shoulder. Bouncing excitedly Mercedes and her stop at the end of the bridge where they have two dispensers that contains food pelts to feed the ducks with. Brittany goes to put her two quarters she stifled out of  the bottom of her purse that hangs over her right shoulder, crossing over her chest and resting on her left hip; but before she twists the handle to receive the ducks food she stop. Listening intently she stands frozen as she hears the beginning of music playing behind her. Dropping her arms and turning to see where the noise is coming from she sees three guys in off white dress suits standing off to the side of the bridge carrying guitars. All around her people that were walking by stop and listen as well.

Brittany looks back to her friends and finally notices Santana isn’t there. Turning in a full 360, she looks through the crowd of people but doesn’t see her. Worry starts to seep into her mind, but is quickly vanished when the sound of a raspy angelic voice travels through the air reaching her ears. Brittany turns around quickly; she’d know that voice anywhere. She’s only been listening to the soulful husky voice everyday of her life whether it be in real life or in her dreams since she was at least fifteen years old. The blonde looks up to the bridge her and their three friends just crossed and watches as the stunning Latina slowly walks over the bridge as she sings…

_(Santana)…Let the bough break, let it come down crashing. Let the sun fade out to a dark sky. I can’t say I’d even notice it was absent…._

Santana steps off the bridge, landing in front of Brittany. She reaches down and takes a pale hand in her own. Looking into blue eyes, she continues to sing.

_(Santana)…Cause I could live by the light in your eyes…_

She sends the blonde a quick wink, causing the other woman to duck her dead bashfully. Brittany loved hearing Santana sing. She even more loved when Santana sang to her; about her. But this was more than she could ask for. Santana was not only going a step above singing a love song to her in private, and singing in front of their friends, and family, but she was now singing a love song to her in front of their loved ones and the whole crowd of people that are now gathering around them.

_(Santana)…I’ll unfold before you. What I’ve strung together; The very first words, Of a lifelong love letter…_

By now, Brittany’s cheeks burned with how high the corners of her mouth were being pushed up by her smile. She didn’t know why Santana was singing to her, but she didn’t care at this point. Brittany just wished she could record this moment so she could re-watch it everyday for the rest of her life. She can’t seem to tear her eyes away from Santana’s as the brunette places a tanned hand to the small of her back ushering her along a winding sandy dirt path.

_(Santana)….Tell the world that we finally got it all right. I choose you. I will become yours and you will become mine. I choose you. I choose you.(Yeah)…_

The blonde looks over her shoulder and sees that not only is Rachel, Quinn and Mercedes following them close behind with wide smiles, but a whole group of people she’s never seen before are following as well. She can’t help the laugh that escapes her wide grin, think how crazy it all was.

_(Santana)…There was a time when I would have believed them. If they told me you could not come true, Just love’s illusion. But then you found me and everything changed, And I believe in something again…_

When Brittany turns back around she feels Santana’s hand slip away from its place on her back. Smiling Santana looks over her shoulder. Following her girlfriend’s gaze Brittany looks back behind Santana, through a number of Willow trees and other beautiful plants she doesn’t know the name of. She makes out the sight of an old gazebo with vines growing up its sides wrapping itself around the white post with white flowers blooming all over.

_(Santana)….My whole heart, Will be yours forever. This is a beautiful start. To a lifelong love letter…_

Santana jumps up on the white painted wood benches that circle the gazebo. Walking across the tops of them, she puts on a small performance for her blonde, not focusing on anyone there around her but the woman who snuck up all those years ago and stole the heart she didn’t even know she had.

_(Santana)…Tell the world that we finally got it all right, I choose you. I will become yours and you will become mine. I choose you. I choose you…_

Standing, mouth agape with a wide smile, Brittany looks over her shoulder when she feels a tap there. Rachel hands her a white flower while Quinn tucks a blue on behind her ear. The tall blonde’s eyes shift between her two friends standing on the left of her and her girlfriend singing and dancing around the gazebo in front of her, looking for some type of answer in their faces. Mercedes walks up to her right and places a hand on her elbow. Swinging her head to the right to see who it was that touched her, Brittany willing follows as Mercedes gives her a helpful push further into the gazebo.

_(Santana)…We are not perfect. We’ll learn from our mistakes, And as long as it takes, I will prove my love to you. I am not scared of the elements. I am under-prepared, but I am willing…_

Jumping down from the bench, Santana stands in front of Brittany once again. Taking both of the blondes hands in her own, she looks her in the eye and sings the next line of the song, wondering if Brittany knew what was going on yet or not.

_(Santana)…And even better. I get to be the other half of you…_

From the look on the blonde’s face Santana could guess that Brittany might have an idea. And Brittany does. She knows something is going on and that this is more than just a love song, but Brittany can’t exactly put her finger on it. She tries to think if she missed an anniversary or birthday, but she knows for sure she hasn’t.

_(Santana)…Tell the world that we finally got it all right, I choose you. Yeah. I will become yours and you will become mine. I choose you, I choose you, I choose you…_

It isn’t until the Latina in front of her drops down on one knee that everything clicks in Brittany’s mind. Even before any words can escape Santana’s plump lips Brittany’s jaw drops at the sight in front of her.

“Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God.” She whispers frantically with a smile.

Watching the scene unfold in front of her, Rachel wipes a tear from her flushed cheeks with the sleeve from her shirt. Quinn leans into Rachel looking at the brunette with a smile, while she bringer her thumb and pointer finger, pinched together, up to her lips as she blows out creating a loud whistle. Mercedes brings her hands up and softly claps her hands together in excitement, but not wanting to interrupt the beautiful moment between the two smiling lovers.

Sending her lover a quick smile Santana quickly reaches inside her bra and grabs a small black velvet box. Looking back up to watery blue eyes Santana takes a deep breath before saying, “Brittany, I am **so** in love with you.” She breathes a laugh, “I think I always have been, since the day I laid eyes on you. I spent so long trying to convince myself that I wasn’t  hiding my true feelings for you. Yeah, we’ve had bumps in the road, but I believe we always found our way back to each other because we are meant to be together forever. I don’t want to ever hide you or my feelings for you ever again. I want the whole world to know just how lucky I am to have you. You are amazing, Brittany, and I feel so lucky everyday to get the privilege to love you. Even more so that you love me back. And I want that for the rest of my life… So, that brings me to where I am today. Here in front of some of our friends and a whole bunch of people I don’t know.” She laughs again fidgeting with the box in her hand. “I want them all to see just how much I love you and I want to spend the rest of my life loving you out loud. So, Brittany S. Pierce, Will you Marry me?” Santana flips the box open showing off a simple white gold round diamond ring with a set of eight small diamonds running along each side of the band.

The sound of clapping and whistle is heard in the background and Brittany brings both her hand up to cover her mouth as tears sprang from her eyes. When her brain finally catches up with the rest of her body Brittany slowly lowers her hands and opens her mouth to answer, “–”


	8. Vegas

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on the Glee Fan Project..Quinn and Mercedes showed up in L.A. to help Santana plan the perfect proposal. Tina was suppose to show up too, but she was in NY because Blaine ended up in the hospital Wait! What happened? Kurt and Blaine were at the gym when Blaine over worked himself and passed out. It turned out that he had been starving himself to death because he didn’t like the way he looked.Yikes! Brittany had her grand opening for her studio and got to meet some of her new students while Will and Emma accidentally called 2 people to babysit Daniel and they happened to be the 2 former lovers, Sam and Mercedes. Awkward! Now it seems that Sam's starting to really struggle with ignoring his feeling for Mercedes. Will these two just get back together already? Santana got nervous about what Brittany’s answer to the proposal would be and Quinn slapped some sense into her…Poor Santana keeps getting slapped! Kurt felt guilty for not noticing Blaine’s struggles and over compensated it by watching everything the poor man ate making him feel like an animal at the zoo. Will Blaine get help for his self image problems? Anyways, Santana finally proposed to Brittany, Did she say yes?…and that’s what you missed on Glee!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s our eighth episode! This episode is very special for us because it represented a big challenge for our writing team. We have 15 characters interacting at the same time and writing that is one hell of a challenge, but we think they did great! Expect some surprises, some sexy stuff and why not, some silly lines because after all they are in Vegas. All the places that are mentioned during this episode are real, if you want to know more about them we invite you to google them or send us an ask so we can share with you all some pictures. It’s an amazing city! Anyways, as usual at the top you can fin a link to the intro video and the Episode 8 playlist of songs, in case we have included a song that you may not have heard of. Remember that we wrote the characters singing these songs with their own vocal arrangements in mind that’s why some of these songs are covers and some are the originals. We hope you enjoy them!

Intro video

[Episode 8 Playlist](http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv_rvGfxbXKOqe8Vn4NWkxI8Cx79gHsxr)

 

Blaine’s eyes snap open. He looks around the small room noticing it’s still dark. _‘What time is it?’_ He thinks to himself as he slowly grabs his phone from the nightstand. _‘5:30am’_ He repeats to himself. It’s early. The alarm clock is scheduled for 6:00am so he pulls the comforter over his shoulder and tries to go back to sleep, but the excitement takes over him and he starts to shift uncomfortably.

Thinking it’s probably best if they start packing earlier, he turns to the left side of the bed and looks at the handsome boy sleeping beside him. Whispering into his ear, Blaine tries to wake him. “Kurt…”

“Hmmm?” Kurt murmurs still asleep.

“Babe…Wake up…” Blaine insists.

“Hmmm.” Kurt replies again rolling over his sleep and draping an arm over his fiance.

Unable to control his excitement, Blaine starts to exclaim, “Come on, sleepyhead! Wake up! Wake up! Wake up!”

Slowly Kurt’s eyes flutter open. His sleepy blue eyes scan the room and he also notices that the room is still dark. Closing his eyes again, he lets out a tired sigh, “What is it?”

Blaine’s smile spreads across his face pulling at the corners of his lips and bunching up his cheeks. He leans over and kisses his fiance’s forehead, “Guess what?”

Kurt, who’s already falling asleep again, murmurs, “What…?”

“We’re going to Vegas!” Blaine exclaims in an excited whisper.

Kurt’s eyes snap open and smiles. _‘We’re going to Vegas!’_ He repeats to himself as the excitement starts to show. Sleep now long forgotten.

Blonde hair whips about as Brittany runs around the small apartment gathering random items and placing them into a black duffle bag. “San, do we need to bring this?” She asks.

Not knowing what her fiance is referring to, Santana walks out of their shared bedroom while trying to fold a pair of jeans. Getting frustrated, she ends up wading them in a ball and shoving the demi clothing under her arm, pinning it to her side. She comes to the end of the hallway and looks into the living room expecting to see the blonde. “Where are you?” She questions.

“In here!” Santana hears Brittany say from the kitchen. She turns and looks through the breakfast bar cut out in the wall, and sees Brittany standing by the sink holding a small white two slice toaster. A light chuckle escapes Santana’s lips as she smiles, “A toaster Britt? Why would we need a toaster?”

“Well, because you always like to eat toast with our orange juice in the morning. What if they don’t have a toaster?” Brittany explains with a serious look.

Santana grins at her fiance’s thoughtfulness. “That’s sweet Britt, but we’re going to Vegas, I’m pretty sure they will have a toaster, babe.” She walks the short distance to where Brittany is standing in the kitchen and gently takes the toaster from Brittany’s hands. Setting it back on the counter she gives the tall blonde a peck to the cheek before sending her a quick crooked smile and bumping shoulders, causing Brittany’s serious face to quickly form into a smile. “I just have a few more things to put in our suitcase, then I’ll be done packing.”After receiving a short nod from Brittany, Santana starts to walk back down the hallway when a knock is heard from the front door. “Could you get that, babe?” Santana yells out from in the bedroom.

“Got it!” Brittany yells back as she comes out from the kitchen and jogs to the front door. Twisting the bronze knob and swinging the door open. “Rachel! Hi!” Brittany says excited before looking behind Rachel and noticing Wesley standing behind her. Looking between the two she tilts her head to the side, asking, “So, what are you guys doing here?”

Rachel’s mouth opens and closes a few times as she looks to Brittany, certainly confused with scrunched eyebrows. Finally finding her words she says, “We are here to pick you up? We are going to Las Vegas…Remember?”

Looking up to the ceiling in thought then back down to Rachel, Brittany laughs, “Oh, yeah! I forgot to what we were packing for again…” She opens the door further, motioning for Rachel and Wesley to walk in and closing the door behind them. “Well, we’re not quite ready yet. San’s in the bedroom finishing up the last of the packing.”

Rachel rolls her eyes, “You’ve got to be kidding me.” She steps around Brittany who is standing in front of her with raised eyebrows, in shock at her sudden outburst. Stomping to the bedroom at the end of the hall, Rachel roughly pushes the cracked door all the way open. “Santana!” She yells out, causing the Latina to jump and turn from her stance by the bed where she was shoving a few more pieces of clothing into the corners of a dark blue suitcase.

“What the hell, Berry?”

“We told you to be ready by eight! We’re going to be late!” Rachel crosses her arms, glaring at her friend.

Santana rolls her eyes. Turning back around she flips the suitcase shut then brings the zipper around closing it shut, “Relax, Hobbit! We have plenty of time! Besides we still need to wait for Mike.”

“Wait, Mike’s coming too?” Rachel uncrosses her arms and walks to the bed taking a seat on the edge of it and looking up to Santana.

“Yeah, he sent us a text not to long ago saying he was almost here so it shouldn’t be too much longer. You know he’s coming and teaching a seminar class at P.L.A.D. with Britt right?” Without letting Rachel answer her question, she continues, “Yeah, he lives in Chicago now, working with one of his teachers as well as choreographing and dancing with big name stars like freaking Lady Gaga. It seems Asian number two totally made it big!” Santana laughs, “Anyways, I guess he’s now dating some other Asian chick. Is it an Asian thing to only date other Asians?”

Rachel shakes her head, “That’s so racist, Santana.”

“What? I’m just stating that Mike obviously has a type. He met his new chick at the Asian supermarket, like seriously, come on. His life should be like an Asian chick-flick. Oh and then he–”

“Okay, wa-wa-wa-wait!” Rachel stands up waving her hands asking for Santana to pause her speech. “Since when do you know so much about other people’s lives? Especially Mike’s?

Santana shrugs, “He’s good friends with Britt, apparently he’s her brother from another mother…Asian mother, I guess.” She picks the suitcase up from the bed by its handle. Setting the bag on the floor she pulls on the handle extending it and pushing it on its wheels as she starts to wheel it out the bedroom door and down the hallway. Rachel quickly stands up and off the bed following behind Santana.

Santana and Rachel make it to the living room, their presences interrupting the conversation going on between Brittany and Wesley. “Oh, hey! Are you done now?” Brittany questions.

Rolling the suitcase by the front door, Santana tilts it back to the upright position and lowers the handle. “Yep, all done.” Brittany jumps up from her spot on the couch next to Wesley and grabs the black duffel bag she was filling earlier; walking it over and sitting it next to the suitcase by the door.

Wesley puts his hands on his knees, pushing off, he stands up and makes his way to the two ladies by the front door. “I can go ahead and take your bags down stairs.” He offers, “It this all you have for the both of you?” He asks politely.

“We have one small carry on bag, but we can bring that down. You two go ahead we just got to lock up and make sure all lights are off and we will be right down.” Santana says, moving around the house picking up her phone charger and her house keys.

Throwing the strap of the duffel bag over his shoulder, Wesley grabs the small handle to the suitcase, opting to carry it instead of using its wheels, and opens the front door. “I’ll just meet you girls by the taxi…”

“I’ll come with you.” Rachel starts to walk out of the small apartment behind her boyfriend. Stopping in the doorway she turns around facing her two long time friends. “Seriously. Five minutes!” She threatens, narrowing her eyes at the two women before turning back around and disappearing down the hallway.

The corners of the tall blonde’s lips tug into a small frown, “Well I guess we should hurry down there.” Brittany strides over to the couch; picking up Lord Tubbington from his resting place on top of the couch. “Hey, buddy.” She talks to the cat in a childlike voice. “You ready for a road trip?” She walks to the closet by the front door. Holding the large feline in the crook of her left arm she reaches inside the closet with her right, pulling out the pet carrier.

Grabbing her leather jacket off the coat hook by the front door and slipping into a pair of knee high black boots with straps lacing around her calves, Santana looks up to see Brittany trying to stuff Lord Tubbington into his carrier. “Wait. No, Britt. There is no way that cat is coming to Vegas with us!”

After pushing the cat the rest of the way into the carrier, Brittany clicks the door shut making sure it’s locked before standing up and looking to her fiance. She lets out a sigh, “Admit it, San, you just don’t like him!”

Santana shrugs her shoulders, “You’re right, I don’t like that fat cat.” She takes a few steps closer to Brittany, catching the blonde’s whisper, _‘He’s not fat, he’s big boned.’_ She brings her hands up and places them on Brittany’s forearms, moving them up and down in a soothing pattern. “Look, it’s just that I swear that cat has something against me. He hisses at me all the time and then he tries to sleep between us, so I can’t get my cuddle on with you.”

Brittany bites her bottom lip trying to keep her frown from turning into a smile. As her cheeks bunch up, her eyes shift between brown ones. “Hey.” She playfully tugs on Santana’s arms. “I definitely prefer your cuddles.” She brings her hand up and pinches Santana’s chin causing the Latina to change her scowl into a light laugh. “But, hey, if you really don’t want Tubs to come I can ask Nelly if she can watch him.”

Brittany’s face wears a smile on it as she looks intently at Santana waiting for her to answer. Santana can see the smile, but what she notices even more is the sadness laced in the taller girl’s voice. “No…Let’s take L.T. to Vegas…Who knows, maybe he has some luck and wins the jackpot for us.” She sends her fiance a wink before stepping out of Brittany’s arms.

Bending over, Brittany picks up Lord Tubbington’s carrier, “You’re right, San!” She says before turning her tone serious, “I’ll just have to keep an eye on him. I don’t want him to fall on his addiction to ecstasy again.” Santana smiles, reaching for the door and pulling it open before nodding for Brittany to step out first. After grabbing their carry-on bag she closes the door behind her and locks it.

They both make their way out of the apartment building and out onto the sidewalk. Walking over to the car Brittany notices Mike is already there standing next to Wesley talking while Rachel talks animatedly with the drive in the front seat. “Mike! You’re here.” The tall blonde makes her way to the taxi, pulling open the back door and placing Lord Tubbington’s carrier on the leather seat.

While Brittany says her _‘Hello’s’_ to Mike, Santana walks to the back of the taxi where the trunk is already popped open. She goes to place her carry on bag in the trunk but finds there isn’t any room. “My God!” She whispers to herself, looking around all the bright pink suitcases. “Damn, Berry, did you have to pack your ego too?” She yells, causing Rachel to look up from the front of the car and roll her eyes.

“Let’s just get going, Santana.” Rachel opens the back door and slides in. Looking to her right she notices the cat carrier. “No, no, way. You’re not taking your cat!”

“Don’t start with me, Gollum.” Santana opens the door on the opposite side of the taxi and waits for Brittany to slide in first. “Britt want’s him to come and what Britts wants, Britts gets.” She says in her best ghetto girl accent.

The group piles into the car, the four former Glee clubbers all shoved closely in the back and Wesley taking the passenger seat. The taxi shifts into drive and pulls away from the concrete curb as Rachel throws her hands up and yells out, “We’re going to Vegas!” Santana rolls her eyes trying to fight a smile as the rest of the group claps and yells out their excitement as they taxi heads in the direction of LAX.

A blonde man is driving through the small back-roads of Lima, Ohio. The sun is just starting to rise and peak through the tree’s that line the road. He rubs his hands to warm them a little as he waits for the traffic light to turn green. _‘Calm down, Sam…Calm down!’_ He keeps repeating to himself as he lets his foot of the break and presses on the gas inching the car forward. Since the unplanned babysitting date he had with Mercedes, he has been thinking a lot about his situation and the one thing he’s sure about is that he can’t stay away from her anymore and he wants to be with her again. But after pushing her away for months he doesn’t know how to do it exactly.

“Just be honest Sam…You can do this. Find the right time and just be a gentleman…Girls love gentlemen.” He murmurs to himself as he pulls up to the curb and slowly parks his car in front of Mercedes’ house.

After stepping out of the car and dusting off the imaginary dust on his shirt he takes a deep breath and walks to the doorstep. Sam brings his finger to hover over the doorbell before hesitantly pressing the round white button ringing the doorbell. After a few minutes of silence the door swings open and Mercedes appears flashing him a friendly, yet breathtakingly beautiful, smile.

“Hi!” She says, that adorable smile never leaving her face.

“Hi! Are you ready?” Sam immediately asks nervously wiping the sweat from his hands onto his jean clad thighs.

“Yes…” She trails off, quickly glancing to the two suitcases stacked by the door.

“Let me help you with that…” Sam leans over and grabs both the bags. Mercedes thanks him as he walks out the door. She follows him closing the door behind her.

“Thank you so much for taking me to the airport…” The diva says softly as Sam is placing her bags in the trunk next to his.

“No problem…It’s my pleasure, besides we’re going to the same place and we are on the same flight. I don’t see why we couldn’t drive to the airport together too.” He says closing the trunk and hurrying to the passenger side to open the door for her.

Mercedes ducks her head bashfully before climbing into the car while trying to keep her emotions at bay. Sam opens his door and climbing in he murmurs. “Airport here we come.” Earning a small laugh from the diva.

Sam starts the car and immediately silence fills the atmosphere. Mercedes, trying to break the ice, speaks up. “So…How have you been?”

“Good, good, and you? It’s been a few weeks since the last time we talked…” Sam says almost in a whisper, still trying to find the right words.

“Yeah…And we didn’t even have a proper talk…We just took care of the baby.” Mercedes replies smiling at the memory of that day.

“Yeah…But it’s never too late, right? We can talk all the way to Vegas…With my teacher duties I’ve been kind of disconnected from everyone, so maybe you could fill me in?” He replies in hope to get the small talk going for hours. He has talked to Blaine a couple of times, so he knows all about what they’ve done, but he’s just looking for a way to hear Mercedes’ voice. The truth is he could listen to her voice all day and never get tired of it.

“Yeah…Sure! Oh gosh, where do I start?” She asks to herself out loud.

“What about Kurt’s birthday?” He exclaims excited.

“But that was months ago!”

“Yeah I know…But I missed the party…” Sam says as a matter of explanation.

“Okay, well it was hella crazy. Everyone was there, just Puck, Tina’s boyfriend and you were absent. We had some new faces though…Artie’s girlfriend, Madison. She’s a lovely girl and Rachel took her new man, Wesley. Apparently they’re pretty serious, he’s a really nice guy too. I suppose you’re going to meet them both today. We had a blast, we drank and danced. Rachel and Blaine took over the karaoke, nothing unusual about that, but it was a lot of fun and we had the chance to catch up with our lives.”

“Yeah, I heard it was fun. Blaine called to share some details back then, but since he had passed out he really didn’t tell me much about it…”

“Yeah, all the boys passed out at some point…” She says smiling again at the memory of her friends all sleeping completely drunk at the loft. “Anyways…What else do you want to know?” She asks.

“Ummm…What did you do next?” Sam ask just wanting the conversation to continue.

“Ummm, I went to L.A. to help Santana with the proposal…”

“Oh yeah…I heard about them too and about what happened to Blaine. I wanted to go to New York to see him, but I was still in Chicago for the Nationals’ competition.”

“That’s right! You made it to nationals! How was it!? I never asked you about it…I’m sorry…” Mercedes quickly apologizes.

“Don’t worry…I understand why you have been distant…” He says thinking out loud. Mercedes shifts uncomfortable.

 _‘I haven’t been distant.’_ She exclaims to herself. _‘You have been distant with all your just being friends stuff…’_

Sam noticing Mercedes discomfort quickly changes the subject, “Anyways…It was great. We didn’t win, but got third place.”

“Oh…Well that’s not bad. third place at nationals is actually really good. You should be proud of yourself Sam…What you’re doing with these kids is really good. You’re like the new Mr. Schue…Without the vests and Journey songs, but still…” She laughs at her own joke and Sam laughs back feeling some of the tension between them seep away as they both start to relax for the first time since being in the presence of the other.

Mercedes takes a deep breath getting lost with the sound of Sam’s laughter. She looks at him intently and can’t help but think how amazing his lips look and how bad she wished they were pressed against hers. _‘Sam’s so handsome and those lips are beau–’_

“Are you alright?” Sam asks, noticing her sudden silence.

“Beautiful…I mean, yeah I’m fine…The view-the view is beautiful.” She replies slightly blushed.

“Yeah…The dawn is always beautiful around here…”

Mercedes nods and they both look to the front. It’s obvious they both are having a hard time with this _‘just friends’_ act they have going on since she came back home.

“We’re almost there…” Sam announces. Mercedes just smiles as the car turns to the left and they make their way to the Lima Allen County airport.

Tina turns onto Chapel Street as her new best friend previously instructed her and starts to look at the name of the streets. “Olive? Orange? What’s wrong with the name of these streets…” She murmurs to herself. Quinn told her _‘York’_ and so far nothing sounds similar to that. Deciding to pull over and take out her phone, she dials Quinn’s number. “Quinny!” She immediately greets.

“Where are you, T? We’re already late!” Quinn replies through the phone.

“I’m around the campus, but I can’t find the street you said…”

“Give me your exact location…” The blonde asks leaning up against a light pole outside on the sidewalk next to a few other people.

“Ummm…I’m in front of a big green area on Chapel street and there’s a Radio Shack next to a Gym…” Tina replies looking at the unfamiliar surroundings.

“You’re almost here!” Quinn exclaims excited. “Just keep moving forward you’ll see a Panera to your left–”

“Yum!” Tina interrupts.

“Tina! Focus!” Quinn snaps.

“Sorry…You were saying…”

“You’ll see a Panera to your left and then the art gallery. Turn to your right and you’ll see me standing there. I’m wearing a black dress with yellow flowers.” The blonde pushes off the light post with the heel of her shoe and walks to the edge of the sidewalk curb, looking down the road to see if she can see Tina’s car.

“Okay, then I’ll see you real soon…Can I stop and buy some bread?”

“Tina! We’re late! There’s no time for bread!” Quinn replies exasperated.

“Okay, okay relax…I’ll see you soon.” Tina turns the wheel with two hands while pinning the phone to her ear with her shoulder.

Before hanging up Quinn stresses, “No bread Tina…I’m serious…” She knows her friend too well.

“Yeah, yeah…” The Asian girl replies as she ends the call. Following Quinn’s instructions, she finds the _‘York’_ street in the blink of an eye. When she turns to the right she sees Quinn standing next to a group of four Yale students. They all are wearing Yale hoodies and caps. Quinn waves excited as Tina pulls over in front of the drama school dorms.

“Quinny!” Tina exclaims excited while climbing out of the car.

“T!” Quinn replies reaching her friend and giving her a hug. “I want you to meet my friends…” She points to the group of Yale students that Tina had previously spotted.

“This is John, James, and Anne.” Quinn announces as each person gives a wave or a simple _‘hi’_ as an introduction. Tina leans over and quickly says ‘ _Hello!’_ to all of them as Quinn continues. “And this is Sarah, my roomie…You two already know each other thanks to the video calls though…”

“Nice to finally meet you in person Tina…I mean T” Sarah exclaims all friendly, quickly giving the Asian girl a hug. “You’re so pretty!”

“Aww, thank you Sarah! You’re so pretty too!” Tina blushes.

“Okay yeah, we get it you both are pretty, but now we have to go Tina…Because thanks to you we’re late!” Quinn scolds while she quickly gives her ‘ _Goodbye’_ s to her friends and places her bags in the back of Tina’s car.

“Nice to meet you all!” Tina exclaims as she climbs her car again and starts the engine.

“To get to the Bradley International Airport we need to turn right at that traffic light and get on I-91 North from South Frontage Road and Oak Street Connector, and then follow that street until we reach Hamilton Road in Windsor Locks. Then take the Hamilton Road South exit from CT-20 West–” Quinn is explaining when Tina interrupts.

“Stop, stop, stop…You sound like a GPS. Why don’t you just drive instead? I don’t know this city…”

“No…Just keep going straight and when I tell you turn to the right…” Quinn says using her hands to point in the directions Tina would be taking.

“Okay.” The brunette sighs and presses on the gas.

The girls quickly start to make their way to the airport as they catch up with their lives. It’s not that they have a lot to talk about because now they practically talk everyday, but there’s always something new to share.

“I’m super excited about this trip!” Quinn exclaims as she puts down the _‘Las Vegas’_ flyer she was reading. “I’ve never been to Vegas!”

“I know! I’m excited too! This is going to be an awesome trip! Everyone will be there! It’s been so long since we have all been in the same place at the same time.” Tina exclaims squealing in her seat.

“Yeah!” Quinn exclaims, but suddenly her smile falls. “Everyone but our men…”

Tina quickly turns around to give a sympathetic look to her friend. “Don’t worry Quinny, I know you’re sad because Puck’s not going…Shane won’t be there either, but we have each other and all our friends…It’ll be like old times.”

“You’re right! We won’t be alone that’s for sure… How’s Shane doing? I heard he got promoted to a higher rank?” Quinn inquires looking over the center console to her friend.

Tina smiles a proud smile. “Yes! He’s now the commanding officer in charge of his unit. They are currently in Baghdad.”

“You must be proud. I know I am of Puck and he’s just a staff sergeant, but I know he has worked really hard to get there, I’m just really proud of him. I just can’t wait for him to get home. Who knew I’d fall in love and miss Puckerman so much.” She lets out a playful laugh.

Tina looks to the passenger seat and smiles to her friend again. “Everyone but you two knew you were meant to be together. And yes I’m extremely proud of him, but I’m with you in one thing…I just want Shane home it’s been five months since I’ve seen him…”

“Yeah…I haven’t seen Puck in almost four months…”

The two friends share sympathetic looks and Tina, taking a deep breath chirps, “Anyways, this is sad and depressing! Let’s change the subject…This weekend is supposed to be about having fun, not dwelling on our men at war.”

Quinn nods and the girls continue talking about life at Yale and Brown, then before they know it, they are pulling into the long term parking at the airport, paying to leave Tina’s car there for the next couple days and heading into the terminal.

Kurt and Blaine are running around their small loft picking up all the stuff they will need for their trip. Although they have been awake for more than three hours, their bags still lay face up, open and half empty. Kurt is at the bathroom collecting some of his products when a very desperate Blaine yells from the room.

“Kurt! Babe! Have you seen my navy blue sweater?”

Kurt, who is usually the one to reorganize their clothes according to the season, just yells back. “Top left drawer!”

Once the words escape from his lips, realization hits him. _‘Did he just ask for a sweater?’_ He thinks. Frowning, he emerges from the bathroom and heads to their room. Peaking through the curtains, he asks. “Honey, are you packing sweaters for Vegas?”

Blaine shrugs. “Better be prepared for any kind of weather. It’s my first time there so…”

Kurt smiles and looks at his fiance with heart eyes. “You’re so right…Pack one for me too…”

Blaine smiles back and just when he’s about to come closer to kiss his fiance, there’s a knock on the door. Kurt laughs and winking towards his soon to be, he says, “I’ll get it, but make sure to leave some space there for my extra clothes!”

Blaine nods and Kurt walks to get the door. He slides it open and Artie and Madison are standing there all excited and with one suitcase in hand each.

“Artie! Madison! Come in! Gosh! I’m glad you arrived early. I heard there’s some traffic so we better hurry! We’re still waiting for Elliott and Dani, but they must be here any minute now… Please make yourself at home. I have to go finish packing, but I’ll be back soon!” Kurt exclaims, unable to hide his agitation.

“You haven’t finished packing?” Madison asks a bit alarmed.

“No! I had a really hard time choosing the right outfits for both of us, but we have almost all our clothes packed. I’m just adding some stuff, so don’t worry.” Kurt shoots Madison a reassuring smile noticing the blonde’s concerned eyes.  

“Really? Are you sure you two don’t need some help?” Artie asks politely.

“Don’t worry Artie, we’re almost done, but thank you! Please make yourself at home we’ll be ready in five minutes tops!” The blue-eyed man exclaims as he disappears behind the curtains.

Not even ten minutes later the four friends hear a horn honk outside the building. Blaine hurries to the window and looking out and down to the street, he sees Elliott’s barely used, dark grey, SUV parked outside the building.

“Okay, that’s our cue to go! Elliott and Dani are here! Let’s go!”

Artie, Madison and Kurt exchange excited glances as they slowly start to walk to the door with all their bags in hand. Blaine grabs Kurt’s hand and taking the other suitcase they walk out the apartment closing the door behind them.

Once outside Elliott greets them excited. “Kurt! Blaine! Artie! Madi! Are you all ready to party!?”

The four friends begin to yell and fist pump in anticipation for their trip to Vegas as Elliott walks to the trunk to open it so they can load their bags. Looking around, Kurt notices that there’s one person missing. “Elliott? Ummm Where’s Dani? We don’t have time to go all the way back to her apartment…I thought she was taking a ride with you…”

“Oh…She’s not coming.” Elliott explains. “She said she was really sorry, but she couldn’t make it…Something about an audition or whatever. I don’t know…I stopped listening after the fifth excuse…” He trails off clearly annoyed.

“Really?” Kurt asks unable to hide his disappointment. He wanted to have all his friends with him in this very important event.

“Yes…I’m sorry, but she did promise she’d be at the wedding. She said she wouldn’t miss it for the world. I honestly just think she’s avoiding the awkward situation of meeting Brittany…” Elliott suggests shrugging and closing the trunk.

The group of friends climb the car and as Elliott starts the engine. Blaine, who’s seated at the back seat exclaims. “Vegas…Here we come!” As a smile spread across his face. Artie and Madison smile at each other, Elliott yells excited, and Kurt just turns around from the front seat and blows a kiss to his excited fiance.

The plane is crowded as Mike tries to squeeze between two tall men in business suites so he can shove his carry-on back in the overhead compartment. After successfully stuffing the black bag in the storage area and pushing it closed he takes a seat on the end chair sitting next to Brittany and Santana.

Wesley walks down the aisle way with Rachel and his small bag. Once he finds their seating row, only a row behind Mike, Brittany, and Santana, he puts the bags in the overhead compartment. Taking the window seat he waits for Rachel to join him. As Rachel weaves her way through the number of bodies the plan has filling it, she starts to sing. Finally, reaching her seat she sees Wesley, smiling when she hears him singing too.

_(Rachel and Wesley)…It started out like a script, in a movie we lived and I know, I know it was true. And I will never forget, how I felt when we met. Don’t know, don’t know what to do…_

Mercedes follows the line of people loading onto the plane with Sam close behind. As she steps on to the plane she starts reading the seat numbers to herself, searching for 26A and 26B. After traveling down the last few rows and finding their seats, she takes a seat next to a small Asian man sitting by the window. Sam takes his seat next to her. They both look towards the small man who is already leaned up against the window with his jacket draped over his shoulders, eyes closed, and a light snore escaping from the back of his throat. Their eyes meet as Mercedes covers her mouth with her hand and Sam sucks his lips into his mouth, both trying to suppress their laughs. Mercedes turns to face forward again, reaching in her purse that now sits under her seat, she grabs a magazine and starts to flip through it. Only looking up when she hears the soft voice from the blonde man to her left as Sam starts to sing.

_(Sam)…You left my heart on the side of the street like a cigarette that nobody needs. You’re not returning my calls, like we were nothing at all. I guess it’s, I guess it’s, I guess it’s…_

The  flight attendant makes her way to top of the aisle way. Her brunette hair is up in a tight bun and she has a blue scarf tied around her neck, matching her blue blazer and pencil skirt. She has brochure in her right hand as she starts to go over the safety regulations to the few passengers on the small plane. She picks up the belt buckle and starts to demonstrate how to buckle the seat belts, but is interrupted by the loud sound of laughing coming from the second row.

Quinn and Tina get quiet quickly when they feel a tap on the chair in front of them, receiving a stern look from the flight attendant, they turn and look at each other. Both with wide grins and lips pressed tightly together, trying to hold in their building need to burst into laughter. Failing at their attempt, they both can’t hold in their excitement as they throw their head back and laugh; causing the flight attendant to roll her eyes as she continues reciting the safety regulations, and ignoring the two girls whose laughter has now subsided only to be replaced by singing

_(Quinn and Tina)…It’s time to go to Vegas! It’s time to go to Vegas! Do everything I always wanted to do. I’ll go to Vegas and forget about you…_

Artie is being pushed by Madison in a chair with wheels that the airport loaned him. The chair is small enough to fit down the tight fitting aisle and a flight attendant locks up his wheelchair securely in the back of the plane. Once they found their seats they see that Kurt, Blaine and Elliott are already seated. Madison takes a seat next to Blaine, allowing Artie to lift himself by his upper arms and shift into the airplanes seat, knowing how he is about being independent and doing things on his own. Artie leans forward and looks to his right down the row of chairs, smiling at his friends. Elliott nods his head, getting Artie’s silent message as the two men start to sing.

_(Elliott and Artie)…You said it’s not what it seems that it’s you and not me. We know, we know where that leads. It means that you’ll disappear. It means that I’ll still be here. Waiting, waiting, waiting…_

Back in L.A. Rachel taps on the seat in front of her along with the beat of the song. Santana quickly stands up, slightly hunched over so she doesn’t hit her head on the overhead compartment, turning to look at the other brunette. Rachel stops tapping, waiting for the Latina’s witty comment, but she just smiles and starts singing. Lowing herself back into her seat, Brittany and Mike join her while moving their shoulders along with the music, dancing in their seats.

_(Mike, Santana and Brittany)…You left my heart on the side of the street like a cigarette that nobody needs. You’re not returning my calls like we were nothing at all. I guess it’s, I guess it’s, I guess it’s…_

Unable to find any interest in her magazine and getting distracted by Sam’s voice she closes the magazine on her lap. Shaking her head to brush her long curls out of her face she takes over singing, causing Sam to smile widely at her as she puts soul into the song showing her excitement for their trip to Vegas.

_(Mercedes)…It’s time to go to Vegas! It’s time to go to Vegas! Do everything I always wanted to do. I’ll go to Vegas and forget about you…_

Kurt and Blaine sway in their seats causing the rest of the group to stare at them laughing. Madison joins in their dance while singing solo.

_(Madison)…You left my heart on the side of the street like a cigarette…_

Each pilot announce over the intercom that they are about to land at the Las Vegas airport and asks for the passengers to fasten their seat belts. The wheels drop down as the plane descends preparing to land.

There is a small jostle as the wheels touch down on pavement, and a few short minutes pass as they all wait for the green light to take off their seat belts.

_(All)…It’s time to go to Vegas! It’s time to go to Vegas! Do everything I always wanted to do. I’ll go to Vegas and forget about you…It’s time to go to Vegas! It’s time to go to Vegas! Do everything I always wanted to do. I’ll go to Vegas and forget about you…_

Each group of friends coming from different parts of the country stand up and grab their carry on's. Pushing and shoving along with the other passengers trying to make their way off the plane as quickly as possible.

After traveling down the make shirt hallway attached from the plane to the terminal, they each stand at the end of the airports door looking up at the neon sign that reads _‘Welcome to Las Vegas.’_

Two bright yellow taxis with neon lights on the hood, parked in front of the Caesar’s Palace hotel. Sam, Mercedes, Quinn, and Tina emerge from the first cab and start to unload their bags as Rachel, Wesley, Mike, Brittany, and Santana emerge from the car behind them.

“This place is amazing!” Brittany exclaims excited as the group stands outside the place looking up at the grand entrance of the hotel. “It looks like one of those hotels they use for the Vegas movies!”

“It is one of those hotels, Britt.” Rachel whispers with a smile.

The hotel staff rapidly approaches them and helps them unload all their bags. Wesley and Santana stay and help the staff place their bags on a tall golden luggage cart, wanting to make sure all their belongings made it inside safely. The rest of the group quickly enters the breathtakingly luxurious hotel looking around with wide starry eyes.

Once the revolving doors open and reveal the lobby of the hotel a chorus of _“oh’s”_ and _“ah’s”_ fill the atmosphere. The lobby has a fountain in the middle with three Roman statues. All the walls are meticulously decorated with beautiful paintings from the Renaissance era. Off to the left there is a long bar that connects with the hotel’s casino and to the right there is a restaurant with an upscale buffet. The dim lighting coming from the ceiling gives off a warm, yet cozy, and luxurious vibe, welcoming them in.

“Are you all sure we’re in the right place?” Sam asks looking around the beautiful hotel.

Tina starts to look around, confused as the rest of the group and spots Kurt and Blaine near the registration desk. Kurt is reading some brochure and Blaine is speaking with the receptionist. “Yes! We are! Look!” She exclaims pointing into the distance. “Blaine and Kurt are over there!”

Brittany turns around and spotting the boys, she immediately runs all the way and gives Kurt a hug. “Kurt, I’ve missed you!”

Kurt smiles and trying to free himself from Brittany’s embrace, he replies, “I’ve missed you too, Britt!”

Walking up behind Brittany and facing Kurt, Sam asks, “Where are the rest of the guys? Artie, Madison, and all the rest?…I thought they were coming too.”

Blaine overhearing Sam’s question, walks up next to Kurt and with a huge smile he replies, “I just gave them their room keys so they went up with Elliott to their rooms to get settled, but they will be meeting us back down here before we go to dinner.”

Sam just nods as Mike, Rachel, Tina and Quinn join the conversation. Tina with her usual tact whispers, more like screams, to Quinn, “And how are we going to pay for this?”

Blaine smiles and interrupting the ladies’ conversation, he mentions. “Don’t worry about that Tina…Everything is covered.”

The whole group turns around and look at Blaine with shocked expressions. Sam unable to keep his thoughts to himself, speaks up, “Everything is covered? How did that happen? Who’s paying, Obama?”

Kurt and Blaine laugh in unison. “No, Sam.” Blaine quickly states. “This is my parents’ wedding gift…”

Sam, still shocked, comes closer to his best friend and asks more privately by leaning in and whispering, “Is your dad really paying for your bachelor’s getaway? Seriously?”

Blaine nods. “Yeah…Though my mom helped. I think she’s trying to compensate me for my dad’s bad attitude.”

In that moment Santana and Wesley walk through the revolving doors with a few staff members of the hotel walking right behind them pushing the luggage carts with all their bags piled neatly on its base.

When Kurt catches a glimpse of Santana, realization hits him and turning over at Brittany he exclaims excited, “Oh my God, Brittany! I almost forgot, Congratulations! I heard someone liked it and put a ring on it!”

Brittany smiles and proudly flashes her ring. Kurt immediately grabs her hand and looks at it closely. “Oh my gosh! This is beautiful!”

Santana, who’s just joining the small group, overhears the compliment and makes a bow mouthing a _‘Thank you’_.

Kurt laughs. “Seriously, this is gorgeous! Who picked it for you, Santana?” Kurt teases nudging the Latina with his elbow.

Santana looks at her friend harshly, “I’m offended Lady-Lips! I chose the ring! You’re not the only one who knows about fashion!”

Blaine, who notices that peculiar harsh tone in Santana’s voice, quickly says, “Anyways, congrats girls! We are very happy for you and we wish you all the best! Welcome to the engaged club!”

Brittany laughs as a bellman comes closer and clears his throat before asking, “Excuse me, to which floor do I need to take all this luggage?”

“Seventh floor…” Blaine immediately tells them all. “My friends will meet you up there in a few minutes. Please wait for them outside rooms 703 to 708.” He states, sounding like he has dealt with _‘the help’_ a few times before.

The bellman nods and quickly disappears behind the elevators doors.

“Okay…So let’s go to our rooms. Here are your keys…” Blaine hands out silver cards to his friends. “This one is for you, Rachel and Wes. This one is for you Tina, you have a nice view, so thank us later. This one is for you Mercedes, you’re next to Tina, so you can thank us later too.” Blaine laughs. “This one is for you Quinn…You’re next to Santana and Brittany, so we apologize ahead in time”

“Hey!” Santana immediately exclaims.

“Sorry!” Blaine flashes his friend a sweet smile. “Well, this one is for you Mike and this one is for you Sam. You two are next to each other. Artie and Madison are on that side too, so have fun!”

Tina, Quinn, Mercedes, Sam and Mike walk to the elevators and immediately take the first ride. Rachel and Wesley wait for the next one and once the doors ping open, the two lovers climb in and quickly push the close button. Santana, who is about to climb in with them, takes a step back when the doors close in her face.

“That was rude.” Brittany murmurs with a slight tug downward on her lips.

“Don’t worry, Britt, they probably want to recreate some Fifty Shades of Grey scene…Sad that they need to rely on some kinky movie to bring anything remotely interesting into their lives”

“Santana!” Kurt and Blaine exclaim.

“What? It can happen…” Santana raises her hands in defense.

Just then the doors of the elevator ping open again and the four friends climb in together. When they reach the seventh floor, the girls immediately climb down and Santana leaves her hand at the door’s sensor to prevent the doors from closing so her friends can climb down too. When the boys don’t move, she asks, “What? Aren’t you two coming?”

Kurt smiles and shakes his head excitedly while silently clapping his hands. “No, we’re staying at the top floor!”

Santana gasps. “What!? I mean…Why!? You mean that out of all of us you two get to stay in a suite? Why? The only stars in this whole group are Mercedes, Rachel, and I…How dare you to give us common rooms! We should be staying in the master suite or something!”

Kurt opens his mouth to respond, but Brittany just shakes her head at him and with a smile she stands behind Santana. She closes the distance between them and leaning her chin on her fiance’s shoulder, she says “San, it’s not like we will be spending that much time in the room, anyways, plus, as long as it has a bed I can throw you on later; that’s all we need, right?” She winks at her other half and kisses her cheek. Santana drops the subject knowing Brittany is completely right.

Blaine smiles and in a  hurry to get to the room, he shouts, “Well, see you later girls!”

Kurt smiles back as the elevator doors close.

Kurt and Blaine reach the top floor and entering the presidential suite code in the elevator panel, the doors _pings_ open. As soon as they have a clear view of what’s in front of them Kurt gasps surprised.

“Are you kidding me? Are we really staying here?” He asks looking back at his fiance who’s wearing the same shocked expression that he is.

 “Yes…Apparently this is our room…” Blaine murmurs trying to hide his excitement. “Our luggage is over there…” He points at the living room where all their bags are stacked.

Kurt squeals and grabs his fiance’s hand. The two boys step over the threshold into the room wearing shocked expressions as the take in everything the room has to offer. The place is covered with fancy dark wood furniture, marble floors in neutral tones, floor to ceiling windows letting in a great view of Las Vegas fanciest Casinos, Hotels, and Fountains. In the living room there’s a huge black leather sofa placed in front of a big plasma T.V. and an entertainment center with all kind of electronic devices. Next to it, there’s a pool table, a three-piece living room, a fully stocked mini bar, and a dining table with at least eight chairs.

They look at each other with smiles so big their cheeks begin to hurt, “Can we just move in here?” Kurt asks in awe of the luxurious place.

Blaine laughs. “I wish! This place is amazing I can’t believe my parents really paid this for us and all our friends! I mean…Wow!” He exclaims looking around the suite with a slacked jaw.

The two boys stand there in shock contemplating all the amazing stuff displayed in front of them. Kurt starts to get excited, looking at his surroundings and trying to take it all in, he says, “Let’s explore this little palace!”

Blaine shakes his head and quickly grabs Kurt’s arm to stop him. “Wait!”

Kurt turns around confused. “Wha–” He tries to say, but before he can complete the question Blaine surprises him by picking him up and carrying him bridal style. Laughing, Blaine flirts. “Let’s find the room first!”

Laughing, happier than ever the men walk to the hall where four wooden doors are still closed. “A little help?” Blaine suggests pointing to his fiance to open the doors.

The blue eyed man looks towards all the doors and while still in Blaine’s arms, the blue eyed man helps his fiance to open the multiple doors looking for the master room. “We have two bedrooms!” He exclaims excited.

Looking at the two open doors Blaine quickly says, “Choose one! But hurry because you’re getting heavy!”

Looking between the two rooms and the man carrying him, Kurt laughs and exclaims, “This one!” Pointing to the room with the big white double doors.

Blaine enters the room with Kurt in his arms. Walking over to the bed he carefully drops him down on top of the large fluffy mattress in the middle of the room, lying beside him as he tries to catch his breath again.

Laughing and patting his fiance’s chest, Kurt immediately stands up and starts exploring the room getting excited with all the plush white robes. “These ones are so soft!” He exclaims as Blaine just admires him with adoration from his spot on the bed, his hand propping up his head.

Entering the bathroom attached to the huge bedroom Kurt immediately squeals. “Oh my god, Blaine come look at this!” He yells. The bathroom has a glass stand up shower, and a 12 jet whirlpool jacuzzi tub. When Blaine enters the bathroom Kurt exclaims. “This place is paradise! Look at this!” He points to the jacuzzi.

The former Warbler walks behind him and starts to look around. The place is beautiful, there’s no doubt about that, but what is even more beautiful to him in that moment is the excitement and happy look on Kurt’s face. Standing behind his love and looking at both their reflections in the mirror, he tries to hug him, but Kurt runs out laughing.

Blaine laughs too and starts trying to catch his playful fiance. Kurt is now running around the whole place laughing like a little kid on Christmas’ morning. Blaine finally catches him near the black leather sofa and grabs him from behind kissing his neck in the process. “Gotcha!”

Smiling and ducking his head  Kurt tries to hide his blush as Blaine continues. “We can explore this place later, I have something else I want to explore first.” He whispers into his ear pushing him to the couch.

Blushing a little and laughing out loud Kurt was in pure bliss, but in that moment an overwhelming feeling hits him and his smile falls down.

Blaine notices the change in his lover’s face and immediately asks worried, “What’s wrong? Are you okay?”

Nodding and looking into bright hazel eyes he explain the reason behind his sudden mood change. “Are you sure this is okay? I mean, you know we can stay in a different room like all our friends, right? I really don’t want you to have any problem with your parents, especially with your dad. Your mom seems to be okay, but your dad is having a hard time accepting the wedding. He has a list of things he doesn’t like about us, and I don’t want to add to it some over the top expensive trip…”

Blaine shakes his head and leans over to start kissing Kurt’s neck. His fiance sometimes worried too much. In between kisses Blaine says, “I already told you that this is fine! It’s their gift to us! Their wedding gift…Now stop worrying about it and let’s enjoy this weekend together with our friends…”

Kurt suppresses his smile and just rolls his eyes at Blaine in a playful way. Blaine who seems to be glued to his love’s neck, completely ignores him and continues to leave a trail of kisses all around Kurt’s neck.

Kurt gives in and with a breathless voice, he adds, “Okay you win, I stopped worrying. You can stop with the kiss teasing now.”

Blaine smiles flirtatiously and whispers into Kurt’s ear. “What if I don’t want to stop?”

Kurt’s heart skips several beats and he whispers, “Then-then don’t stop…”

Still kiss-attacking Kurt’s neck, Blaine stretches his left arm and grabs a remote that was placed next the couch. Pressing the universal button, music starts to resound around the suite setting a new sexy atmosphere.

_(Blaine)…I’m so addicted to all the things you do, when you’re rollin’ round with me in between the sheets. Oh the sounds you make, with every breath you take, it’s unlike anything, when you’re lovin’ me…_

“Oh my God.” Kurt whispers, closing his eyes and getting lost in Blaine’s voice. He is in trance completely lost in the moment. Blaine’s singing and his lips are devouring his neck with desire and passion. Kurt moans. After all…They don’t call this city, Sin City, for nothing.

_(Blaine)…Ooh babe, let’s take it slow. So as for you well, you know where to go. I wanna take my love and hate ya ’til the end…It’s not like you to turn away, from all the positions that we take. It’s not like me to walk away…_

Kurt slowly leans back on the couch with Blaine’s body on top of him. Their lips never detaching as the music keeps roaring through the room. The sun starts to settle in the horizon creating a reddish desertic atmosphere that reflects through the big windows framing the living room.

_(Blaine)…I’m so addicted to all the things you do, when you’re rollin’ round with me, in between the sheets. Oh the sounds you make, with every breath you take, it’s unlike anything, when you’re lovin’ me, yeah…_

After a few minutes of intense kissing, Blaine suddenly stops and stands up pulling Kurt with him. Kurt stands up, still dizzy from all the kissing, and follows Blaine who’s leading them to the master room as he continues singing.

_(Blaine)…And I know when it’s gettin’ rough all the times we spend tryin’ to make this love. Somethin’ better than just makin’ up again…It’s not like you to turn away, from all the positions that we take. Just when I think I can walk away_

Once inside the huge suite room, Blaine turns around and looks at Kurt intently. Kurt takes a deep breath. Blaine’s eyes are open wide and Kurt feels himself getting lost in that lustful look.

_(Blaine)…I’m so addicted to all the things you do, when you’re rollin’ round with me, in between the sheets. Oh the sounds you make, with every breath you take, it’s unlike anything…I’m so addicted to the things you do, when you’re rollin’ round with me. Oh all the sounds you make, with every breath you take, it’s unlike anything, when you’re lovin’ me…_

Singing as he pulls Kurt into the king size bed Blaine smiles a daring smile at his lover. The boys are not saying anything, just lustful glances and smiles go back and forth between them. Blue to hazel. Hazel to Blue.

_(Blaine)…When you’re lovin’ me…_

Blaine closes the small distance between them and locks his lips with his fiance’s. Kurt takes advantage of the position and pushes the shorter man against the big mattress.

_(Blaine)…How can I make it through all the things you do? There’s just gotta be more to you and me…_

The shorter man laughs and while still singing, he grabs his fiance from the waist and makes him roll over. Placing the blue-eyed man against the mattress. Kurt lets out a playful laughter and pulls Blaine from his blue with white stripes bowtie, he kisses him hard.

_(Blaine)…I’m so addicted to all the things you do, when you’re rollin’ round with me in between the sheets. Oh all the sounds you make, with every breath you take, it’s unlike anything, it’s unlike anything. I’m so addicted to all the things you do, when you’re rollin’ round with me. Oh all the sounds you make, with every breath you take, it’s unlike anything…I’m so addicted to you…_

Blaine breaks the kiss as he continues singing. Kurt grabs both Blaine’s hands and pulls him closer to him, making the shorter man to fall on top of him. Taking full advantage of this new position, Blaine starts to kiss Kurt all over the face and neck, leaving a trail of kisses as he keeps singing the last lines of the song.

_(Blaine)…Addicted to you…_

The song suddenly changes, and that change in the beat brings Kurt back to reality. Trying to catch his breath he whispers. “Ho-honey…”

“Don’t…” Blaine immediately complains, anticipating what his fiance is about to say.

Kurt laughs. That always happens between them, they guess each other’s thoughts. “Honey…You know we have to…”

“I don’t want to…” Blaine grumbles without removing his lips from Kurt’s neck. He sometimes says that Kurt’s neck is like a giant magnet and his lips are just two weak pieces of metal with no free will.

“We-we really need to…To get ready for dinner and if-and… if you continue–Oh my God!” Kurt trails off. Blaine is dangerously close to his ear, he is panting and that sends shivers all over Kurt’s body. Blaine frees his hand from Kurt’s and begins unbuttoning his fiance’s shirt. Kurt almost gives in, but the reminder of all his friends waiting for them to go to dinner makes him take a deep breath and, much to his regret, try to stop Blaine.

“B-Blaine…Our friends are waiting and if-and if you keep doing that we’re never -Oh God- leaving this room…” Kurt manages to say and Blaine stops letting out a big sigh.

“I’m sorry honey, but you invited them…” Kurt quickly says, noticing the abrupt change in the atmosphere.

“Fine!” Blaine lets out with a huge pout plastered on his handsome face.

Kurt chuckles at his fiance’s childish antics. “Oh, don’t make that face you dork…This was your idea!”

Blaine laughs and rolling his eyes playfully, he asks, “Raincheck?”

“Duh! Of course!” Kurt exclaims excited. “We’re in Vegas…We will have time for that believe me that we will.” He promises with a flirtatious smile.

Blaine smiles back and giving Kurt one last peck on the lips, he rolls over freeing his fiance’s body. Kurt stands up and giving Blaine a wink, he walks to the suite’s living room to fetch all their bags.

When he reenters the room, he finds Blaine jumping on the bed like a five year-old. Kurt laughs and with a huge smile on his face, he asks, “How old are you again?”

“What!?” Blaine exclaims. “I had to release the contained energy somehow…”

Kurt blushes as Blaine just laughs and sits cross-legged on the bed. Kurt leaves the bags by the bed and takes a seat next to his fiance. Blaine gives his fiance a huge grin and Kurt smiles back, but his smile doesn’t reach his eyes.

“What’s wrong?” Blaine asks immediately reading Kurt’s face.

“Umm…Before-before we join our friends, I want to tell you something…”

“What is it?”

Kurt takes Blaine’s hand in his own, setting them both in his lap, and looks straight into hazel eyes. “Well, I just want to tell you how proud I am for all the work you’ve been doing with your therapist to get better. For you and for me, and I’m just really happy you’re going to be okay, that we’re are going to be okay. Because we’re a team, we move in synchrony, if you fall, I fall…If you win, I win. We’re in this battle together and maybe I’m a little emotional, but I just want you to know how much I love you and how happy I am to be with you and that I can’t wait for the day we say _‘I do’_. And perhaps it’s better if I stop here because I don’t want to cry we’re here to have fun, not to cry…”

Blaine smiles and hugs his love tightly. Kurt gasping for air tries to say, “Blaine! Honey! I can’t breathe!”

Blaine laughs and kisses Kurt’s cheek whispering a soft. “I’m sorry…”

Kurt smiles and Blaine, looking at Kurt with loving eyes, says, “I love you so much Kurt…Never forget that…Okay?” He asks, kissing Kurt’s lips one last time before standing up from the bed with his hand stretch out to his love.

“I love you too.” Kurt replies simply.

“I know…Now let’s get ready! We have a bunch of mood killers waiting for us downstairs…” Blaine says causing Kurt to burst out laughing.

Tina, Quinn, Elliott, Artie, Madison, Sam and Mercedes enter the Caesar’s hotel restaurant. A tall man all dressed up greets them enthusiastically and escorts them to a huge table set off at the end of the restaurant, and conveniently near the main bar, where Brittany, Mike, Rachel, Wesley, and Santana are already waiting for them.

“I’ll be right back to take your order…” The waiter says politely walking away and letting them to take their respective seats.

Santana stands up and walks to bar asking for a new shot of tequila. Elliott, noticing that his friend is already a little light headed, walks next to her and grabs her from the arm, “Santana, don’t you think you’re drinking too much?”

Santana throws him a killing _‘mind your own business’_ kind of look and says, “Excuse me are you the chaperone?”

Elliott frowns as Santana continues, “No, right? Then let me have fun! We’re here to party! And…I’m not paying for any of this, so I’m going to take full advantage of Blaine’s daddy’s generosity and drink all I want.” She exclaims. Knowing it’s sometimes better not to argue with the Latina, Elliott just rolls his eyes and walks back to the table taking his place next to Rachel.

In that moment Kurt and Blaine make the big entrance and Mercedes exclaims, “Finally! We were starving! Hurry up! Let’s order!”

Quickly, Kurt and Blaine take their seats at the fair end of the table as the waiter arrives and takes everybody’s order. Once the waiter is gone the huge group of friends start to get into small conversation groups. Kurt takes his fiance’s hand and looks around trying to catch up with all the conversations going on.

At his left Brittany and Tina are chatting animatedly about P.L.A.D., Brittany’s new dance studio, and about Tina’s college life and  her boyfriend, Shane. Next to them Santana and Artie are talking about Artie’s upcoming first film and about Santana’s new T.V. show. Kurt laughs a little when he catches a few words of the conversation. He knows the Latina is about to detail for the millionth time the big trailer fight she had with Rachel a few weeks ago and how the other brunette slapped her.

 _‘Get over it Santana.’_ Kurt thinks to himself as he focus his attention to the next conversation. Next to Artie and Santana, Sam and Wesley are chatting and seem to be getting to know each other. Kurt frowns confused, he thought everybody knew Wes but apparently Sam did not. _‘Why?’_ He thinks and in that moment he remembers that the new Glee coach was not at his birthday party so he never had the chance to meet Rachel’s new boyfriend.

Rachel, who’s just next to her boyfriend, seems to be really enjoying her little conversation with Madi, Artie’s girlfriend. From what Kurt can get from that conversation, the British girl is talking about Funny Girl and how she went to see the play when Rachel was the big star. Kurt laughs a little as he looks at his high school friend because the brunette just seems to have found a new best friend. _‘Keep praising her and she’ll be kissing you by midnight…’_ Kurt jokes to himself.

Turning his head to the other side of the table, he finds Quinn, Mercedes, and Elliott talking about Yale, Mercedes’ tour and Elliott’s plans after he gets his degree from NYU. Kurt smiles at his friends and finally focus his attention to the last group, Mike and Blaine. He always liked Mike and Blaine’s friendship, before Sam became his fiance’s best friend, Kurt had this idea of Mike and Blaine being life time buddies. _‘Too bad Mike graduated before Blaine…’_ He thinks as he smiles at his fiance, who smiles back and squeezes his hand tightly under the table.  

“Kurt!” Mercedes yells, distracting the blue-eyed man.

“What’s up girl?”

“How’s Vogue going?” The diva asks.

“Great…It’s great. I’m learning a lot and I love working there. It’s really a great place and though my heart is still set on Broadway I’m not saying no to Vogue and fashion. I mean, who knows right? Maybe someday I’ll end up getting a chief editor position and designing my own clothing brand…” Kurt replies excited.

“You could do both…” Quinn suggests simply.

“Yeah…That would be great.” Kurt replies smiling.

Just when he is finally getting into one conversation with a few of his friends, the waiter arrives with their food and Kurt just sighs. He will have to wait to catch up with everybody.

Before the food gets cold, the whole gang starts to eat desperately. When almost all their plates are empty, Santana who has had more than five tequilas by now, speaks up, “So, what’s the plan for tonight?”

They all look back to Kurt and Blaine, who at the same time are looking at each other, searching for the answer in each other’s eyes. “Ummm…We didn’t exactly plan anything for tonight…” Blaine explains.

“Well, that’s not a problem…” Quinn chirps in. “We can improvise…What if we go to the hotel’s casino? We can play some games and have some fun…”

The whole table starts to cheer that idea. They are in Vegas, therefore the casino’s experience is a must.

“Yes! let’s go!” Tina exclaims excited and completely supporting her friend’s idea.

The group starts to stand up from the table and Kurt looks at his fiance with a worried expression. “This is going to be a disaster…” He whispers to the hazel-eyed man.

“Don’t worry…” Blaine tries to reassure Kurt, placing a hand on his fiance’s shoulder and giving it a comforting squeeze. “Everything is going to be fine…”  But his voice doesn’t sound totally convinced.

Expressing his concerns, Kurt yells, “Please guys! Try not to drink too much, okay? The real party isn’t until tomorrow…”

All his friends nod, except Santana, who Kurt sees walking back from the bar with another drink in her hand.

“She’s going to end up drunk, isn’t she?” Kurt whispers to his fiance.

Blaine smiles. “That’s a huge possibility…”

Kurt laughs and stands up. “Well, not everything could be perfect, right?”

Blaine just smiles in agreement as he stands up and lacing his fingers with his fiance’s, they walk hand in hand to the casino, where their friends are already stepping in.

The group of friends enter the Caesar’s Casino and they all gasps in surprise. The place is breathtakingly beautiful with its ancient Roman setting and lavish surroundings. The huge room in covered with slot machines and game tables. “Oh my!” Rachel exclaims as a lady from the casino staff reaches them.

“Good night and welcome to the Caesar’s Las Vegas casino, is this your first time?” She asks looking at the whole group.

They all nod as the lady continues, “Perfect, then let me explain you a bit how this casino works and all the services we offer.” The lady says as she explains them all about the casino. “The Caesars Palace’s casino brings all the Las Vegas excitement in its ancient Roman setting. Here you’ll be able to play your favorite slots, and table games, including Vegas blackjack, and poker. From table games, and slots, to race and sportsbook bets, the Caesar’s Palace offers one of the best Vegas casinos. You can choose from a variety of slot machines including; traditional reel-type slots, keno, video blackjack and video poker. Or, take your chances at the Caesars Palace’s race and sports book. The race book features 65 multiple flat-screen TVs, each in its own private booth. The award-winning Las Vegas sports book also includes multiple flat-screen televisions, as well as 140 seats. But don’t worry…If you’re not into sports then maybe you could try with games like baccarat, roulette and craps. This is a place to have fun and prove your luck. Our casino offers 24-hour table action. Whether you’re looking to win big, or simply in it for the experience…”

“That sounds like fun…” Brittany exclaims while clapping.

“It is…” The casino lady replies with a cheeky smile. “Now, if you follow me I can show you around and escort you all to the game tables.”

The group nods again as they follow the lady around the casino. As soon as they all are familiar with their surrounding the lady excuses herself and leaves them alone to have fun. They all look at each other and Quinn exclaims, “Now let’s have some fun!” Raising her hands into the air as the music starts to roar through the casino’s speakers.

_(Quinn)…Lately I’ve been stuck imagining what I wanna do and what I really think. Time to blow out…Be a little inappropriate ’cause I know that everybody’s thinking it when the light’s out…_

Quinn starts to sing as she grabs Mercedes and Rachel’s hands, inviting them to join her. The two former Glee Club divas share a knowing glance as they start to dance around Quinn. As the song keeps going the three girls start to follow their friends who are spreading around the casino in small groups. Wesley, Sam, Blaine, and Mike immediately reach the blackjack table.

_(Rachel)…Shame on me, to need release. Uncontrollably…_

As Rachel keeps singing, the girls follow Kurt, Elliott, Tina, and Madison to the roulette tables where a group of random players make some room for their friends to join.

_(Quinn)…I wanna go all the way taking out my freak tonight. I wanna show all the dirt. I got running through my mind, whoa…_

Quinn sings the next line as she points to Mercedes and Rachel to walk with her to the carbs tables where Brittany, Santana and Artie are just starting to play.

_(Rachel)….I wanna go all the way taking out my freak tonight. I wanna show all the dirt. I got running through my mind, whoa…_

Mercedes points to the empty rows of slot machines and Rachel and Quinn immediately join as the beat of the song keeps resounding through the big and fancy casino.

_(Quinn)…Lately people got me all tied up there’s a countdown waiting for me to erupt. Time to blow out…I’ve been told do what you do with it. We keep both my hands above the blanket when the light’s out…_

As Rachel and Mercedes keep playing, Quinn stands up on a bench and she continues singing with Mercedes joining eventually.

_(Mercedes)…Shame on me, to need release. Uncontrollably…_

After a few games, the girls walk back again to where Wes, Blaine, Mike and Sam are still playing. The boys smile and flirt with them when they notice the girls approaching.

_(Quinn)…I wanna go all the way taking out my freak tonight. I wanna show all the dirt. I got running through my mind, whoa…_

Mercedes, Rachel and Quinn walk to the roulette and start to dance around Elliott, Kurt, Tina, and Madison. Madison wins something and they all cheer as the girls keep singing and walking away to the next group.

_(Mercedes)…I wanna go all the way taking out my freak tonight. I wanna show all the dirt. I got running through my mind, whoa_

Quinn reaches the craps table where Artie, Santana and Brittany are rolling dice and laughing along together. Mercedes and Rachel dance around while jumping up and down. Brittany takes Santana’s hand, standing up and pulling the brunette to dance with her too.

_(Rachel and Mercedes)…Shame on me, to need release. Uncontrollably…_

Before the song comes to an end, the three girls lean over the bar and sing the last part of the song as all their friends watch them perform from afar, clapping excited.

_(Rachel, Quinn and Mercedes)…I wanna go all the way taking out my freak tonight. I wanna show all the dirt. I got running through my mind, whoa…I wanna go all the way taking out my freak tonight. I wanna show all the dirt. I got running through my mind, whoa…_

When the song ends the group of friends erupt into cheers as they keep playing at their respective slot machines or game tables. Quinn, Rachel, and Mercedes hug each other, and smile walking back to the slot machines too keep playing.

After about an hour or so of keep playing, all the drinks Santana had drank, have hit her bladder, so, with a smile, she excuses herself to the ladies room.

After relieving her full bladder, she makes it back to the table where she had left Brittany and Artie at, Santana notices her fiance is not there anymore. Concerned, she looks around trying to find Brittany, but she’s not anywhere in eye’s sight. Santana walks over to Artie and asks, “Where’s Britt?”

Artie looks over his shoulder and around the casino, “She was here; but I think she went over there, with the girls.” He points to Mercedes and Quinn.

Santana turns and walks in the direction Artie pointed to and sees her friends, but  no Brittany. Getting impatient, she struts up to the two woman and asks them the same question. “Where’s Britt?”

Mercedes and Quinn look at each other before Mercedes speaks up, “She’s not here, the last time I saw her she was with Rachel.”

Santana frowns and walks away to look for Rachel. On her way there she see’s Madison and immediately exclaims, “Hey! You, Artie’s girlfriend! Have you seen Britt?”

Madison frowns slightly and with her polite manners, she replies in a British accent, “Hello, Santana, my name is Madison, and no, I haven’t seen her in a while.”

Santana just rolls her eyes and keeps walking. She wasn’t meaning to be sound mean or rude she was just worried about her fiance. She passes a table where a few people are playing Texas Hold’em poker and finds Rachel. “Hobbit! Hey! Where’s my soon-to-be-wife?”Rachel looks at her and says, “You’re drunk.” As a matter of explanation.

Santana rolls her eyes and says, “I asked you where Brittany was, not if I was drunk!”

“Well, I haven’t seen here in a while. Maybe she’s with Mike and the guys?” Rachel asks pointing to the table where a few of the former Glee guys stood.

Santana looks over and shakes her head. “No she’s not there…Oh my God, Rachel! What if she left me? She’s not here! What if she finally realized I’m nothing but a bitch and she deserves better and left me!” Tears starts to weld up in her eyes.

Santana sobs and Rachel wraps her arms around the Latina cradling her. “Yep, you’re drunk, here comes weepy Santana.”

Rachel pulls away from Santana and forces her to look her in the eyes, and  tries to calm her down, “Santana…She just said yes to your proposal, there’s no way she left you. Plus you’ve always been a bitch and she’s stuck around, you know why?”

Santana shakes her head as more tears ran down her face. “Because you never are a bitch to her, and she loves you and your second personality, Snix.”

Santana doesn’t listen and starts to cry into Rachel’s shoulder. The guys from the card table next to them walk over after overhearing the conversation and Wesley asks, “What happened? Are you alright Santana?”

Rachel shift her eyes from her Santana to her boyfriend after noticing that Santana can’t speak because she’s choking in her own tears. With a roll of her eyes, Rachel explains, “Santana says Brittany is missing and she now thinks that she probably left her.”

Mike, Wesley, Sam and Blaine start to look over their shoulders and around the room for Brittany. Blaine frowns, “Hey guys! I think Santana is right, Britt is really missing.”

“See? She left me!” Santana’s shoulders shake as she cries out, drawing attention to the group. The rest of their friends notice what’s happening and they all gather together.

“What if something bad happened to her!” Santana cries out.

“I’m sure she’s fine…She must be somewhere around the hotel” Quinn says, trying to reassure her friend.

“Oh no!” Sam chirps in causing all his friends to look at him concerned.

“What!?” Elliott exclaims worried.

“I think we’re having a Hangover movie kind of moment” Sam explains.

They all start to roll their eyes, because they are not in the mood for Sam’s silly jokes, but after some seconds they realize they are talking about Brittany. Looking back and forth between them, they all say at the same time, “Let’s go check the roof!”

Everyone, except from Rachel and Santana, run to the roof and when they open the door Brittany is standing at the building tops edge, admiring the Las Vegas’ skyline. Tina bursts out laughing clearly relieved. Quinn walks up behind Brittany while asking, “Britt, what are you doing up here?”

Brittany turns around from the view and shrugging nonchalantly, she confesses, “I wanted to see if the mattress was still here.”

They all laugh and Kurt speaks up, “Well Britt, now you need to come with us and calm your now weeping fiancee, who now thinks you left her.”

Brittany looks up quickly to Kurt. “What. Why would she think that?” The tall blonde heads to the staircase knowing how Santana gets when she’s had a few too many drinks and wanting to easy her worrying mind. The old gang follows down the stairs behind her, all making their way back to the first floor casino.

Kurt and Blaine lace their fingers together as they walk into the Caesar’s hotel restaurant with big grins on their faces. So far they are loving the Sin City. When they reach the huge table, Sam, Mercedes, Quinn, Tina, Mike, Elliott, Brittany, Wesley, Rachel, Madison and Artie are already there sitting at a long table.

Artie notices his friends arriving and walking towards the table, so he immediately takes out his camera and aims the lens in their direction, starting to film. Blaine and Kurt crease their foreheads in confusion, bring out a light wrinkle. Blaine pulls out a chair for Kurt before taking a seat next to him. Blaine looks across the table and straight into the camera and asks, “What are you doing Artie? I mean, you’ve been carrying that thing since we left New York.”

“This my dear friend, is your wedding present.” Artie explains with a proud smile.

“What?” Kurt asks still confused.

“You heard me…I’m going to give you guys your very own movie!” Artie exclaims excitedly.

Kurt and Blaine look at each other with wide smiles on their faces. Kurt is already bouncing in his seat at the idea of having their own movie.

“That’s what I want to see. Smiles and heart eyes! Keep up with the good work my friends that one day you’ll show this to your kids!” Artie smiles as Kurt and Blaine almost choke on their respective glasses of orange juice that they both currently held to their lips.

“And…That is priceless.” Artie says, making fun of his friends before he cuts and puts down the camera so they can continue eating. “One day little Kurt and little Blaine will see this and notice how their dads almost choke by the mention of them. Poor little Kurt and Blaine, they still haven’t been born and their dads are already embarrassing them in front of all their friends…So far you’re doing great at parenting!”

Kurt shoots Artie a glare with his narrowing eyes as Blaine tries hard to suppress the smile that’s playing at his lips.

“Be nice to Kurt and Blaine baby.” Madison chirps in sweetly while placing a hand top of Artie’s.

“Yes be good to us…” Kurt mocks with sarcasm evident in his voice.

Just when Artie opens his mouth to reply, Santana groggily walks up to the table. Her hair is disheveled and she has on a pair of sunglasses. She looks dreadful and like she barely got any sleep the night before. Everyone turns in their seats to look at her intently.  Blaine scans her over from head to toe, “Are you alright?”

Santana gives the hazel-eyed man a _‘Are you kidding me?’_ look before asking sarcastically, “Do I look alright?” She takes a seat next to Brittany and the blonde wraps an arm around her shoulders, running her hand up and down in a soothing pattern.

Blaine slowly shakes his head silently apologizing for the question. Kurt tries to fight back his laughter behind the back of his hand that is pressed to his lips. “Don’t laugh Lady-gay!” Santana exclaims. “This is not funny! My head is killing me!”

“Well, it is funny to me…I told you not to drink too much last night because today is the real party!” Kurt replies, a bit too loud for Santana’s ears causing her to wince at the pain.

“Don’t yell at me okay? I’m sorry!”

Kurt rolls his eyes too, “You better be! Here! Take this!” He hands her a small card.

Santana takes the card with her left hand. Reading it over, she scrunches her brows before widening her eyes, “No! no! no! Is this your definition of fun? Seriously? This is the itinerary of a nursing home! Let me take care of the fun!”

Kurt looks at her and with a very harsh tone he warns, “Stick to the plan Santana! God! You really have trouble with rules, don’t you?”

Santana shrugs while saying, “Yeah, it’s a thing.”

Kurt chuckles and shakes his head. He knows his friend is one of a kind and he loves her because of that. Tina, who has been paying attention to the whole conversation, chirps in and says, “Guys! I have a question…Ummmm why are you organizing your own bachelor’s party? Wasn’t that supposed to be something your best man’s should be doing?”

Kurt turns around and while taking a bite from a piece of toast he replies, “Yeah! And I’m both of our best man’s.”

The whole table turns around to look at Kurt as he had five heads. Santana scoffs while resting her head on her fiance’s shoulder she says, “That’s just his nice way of admitting to being a control freak…”

“San…” Brittany says softly.

“What!? It’s true…How can he be his own best man? That’s crazy!” She exclaims looking around the table and turning to Blaine and raising her hand, “Quick question, when you two have sex does he just do it himself too?” She shrugs and gives a slight frown as she asks the question.

Blaine opens his eyes widely aware of the camera Artie brought back out that is recording everything. Kurt yells all alarmed, “SANTANA!” with a horrified look on his face.

“What!?” The Latina inquiries, as Artie just laughs because, yeah he got everything on tape. With each passing day this film get more and more priceless.

Kurt is preparing a few alcohol-free cocktails at their suite’s mini bar when there’s a weird and unfamiliar sound coming from the elevator, announcing there’s someone wanting there to enter. Frowning confused, he walks to the elevator and allows the entrance to whoever that was behind the closed doors.

“Quinn! Sam!” Kurt exclaims surprised as soon as the doors ping open. “What are you two doing here? I mean, the visit to the museum isn’t until 11am…” He asks confused by the sudden visit.

Quinn and Sam make themselves in and they both start to look around impressed by the lavish room. “Impressive…” Sam murmurs.

“Very…” Quinn agrees, but shaking her head, she adds, “But we’re not here to look at your amazing room, we’re here to kidnap you…” Her voice rasps out.

“Come again?” Kurt asks confused.

“We are here to kidnap you!” Sam repeats using a movie-like kind of voice.

“But–” Kurt starts to complain, but Quinn shuts him up quickly.

“Stop it Kurt! We’re not following that silly schedule you gave us! We’re in Vegas! At both of your bachelor’s parties! So play nice and just follow me!”

Kurt hesitates looking between his two blonde friends and then over at the bedroom’s door where he knows Blaine is waiting for him. Quinn follows Kurt’s eyes and getting the message, she says, “Don’t worry about him, that’s why Sam is here. The boys are going to take care of him too! We know you want to have the bachelor party together, so don’t worry that we’ll be back here in time for the main event, but you two need to spend some time apart! It’s tradition! Come on! Let’s go!”

Kurt frowns deliberating whether or not to follow the blonde, and finally giving in, he says, “Okay just let me say goodbye to him…”

“No time for that! Let’s go!” Quinn exclaims grabbing Kurt by the elbow and pulling him to the elevator, leaving Sam standing alone in the living room.

When Sam enters the master room, he finds Blaine sitting on the bed with his back to the door. Unaware of the new visitor, Blaine says, “Babe, did you know that Elton John has stayed at this same room a lot of times?” He asks turning around and noticing his friend. “You’re not Kurt…Sam what are you doing here? Where’s Kurt?”

“The girls kidnapped him and I’m here to do the same with you…”

“What?” Blaine asks confused.

“Well let’s say that nobody thought that your planned schedule was good enough for Vegas, so we’re changing it a bit. We’re taking you to the Shark Reef at the Mandalay Bay and I think the girls are taking your soon-to-be-husband to some Shoppers Avenue…I don’t know the name of the place but it sounded like a place to go shopping and hang out.”

“But–” Blaine starts to complain.

“Too late buddy, there’s nothing you can do about it. Quinn and Kurt are long gone so you have no choice but to smile and come with me. We’re going to have some fun with the boys!” Sam adds.

Blaine sighs and very reluctantly he says, “Okay…” As they both walk out of the suite.

Meanwhile at the hotel’s lobby, the girls and Kurt start to walk out the main entrance. Kurt stands by the hotel’s taxi curb and Mercedes grabbing his hand and shaking her head says, “We’re not taking a car…We’re walking…”

“Walking?” Kurt asks suddenly worried by the desertic climate.

“It’s not that far…Are you ready?” She asks excitedly.

Kurt nods and a smile spreads across his face. He loves to spend some time with the girls, so with a brand new attitude he takes his arm and hooks it with Mercedes’ and starts to sing.

_(Kurt)…We’re a thousand miles from comfort, we have traveled land and sea, but as long as you are with me, there’s no place I’d rather be…_

Mercedes smiles at her friend and joins the song. Rachel, Madison, Brittany, Santana, Quinn and Tina are walking right behind them. Looking at the fountains and taking in the beauty of the building surrounding the small walk to their destination.

_(Mercedes and Kurt)…I would wait forever, exalted in the scene. As long as I am with you, my heart continues to beat…_

Outside the Caesar’s Palace hotel, Mike, Blaine, Sam, Elliott, Artie and Wesley climb into two yellow cabs. When the driver starts to move forward Blaine notices that his fiance and the girls are walking down the street, animatedly gesturing to each other and singing a song. Following the beat Sam and Blaine join the song as they wave them goodbye.

_(Sam and Blaine)…With every step we take, Kyoto to The Bay, strolling so casually. We’re different and the same, get you another name. Switch up the batteries…_

The boys look out the taxi’s windows taking in the city’s beautiful landmarks while the driver cruises forward to their destination. Both Elliot and Blaine take out their phones and start snapping pictures as they pass next to the Bellagio Lake, the Paris las Vegas hotel, the Planet Hollywood, the MGM grand and the Excalibur Casino. Elliott looks at the window and points to the New York, New York Hotel and Casino causing a smile to spread across Blaine’s cheeks. They are suddenly transported back home.

_(Elliott and Blaine)…If you gave me a chance I would take it. It’s a shot in the dark but I’ll make it. Know with all of your heart, you can’t shake me. When I am with you, there’s no place I’d rather be…_

Kurt and the girls arrive to Bally’s Avenue Shoppes inside the Bally’s hotel and casino. Immediately, Tina and Quinn grab both of Kurt’s arms and pull him into the first store. _‘Bally’s on the avenue’_ a clothing store. The rest of the girls look between each other, shrugging and deciding to follow.

_(Kurt and the girls)…N-n-n-no, no, no, no place I’d rather be, N-n-n-no, no, no, no place I’d rather be, N-n-n-no, no, no, no place I’d rather be…_

The two taxis pull over at the Mandalay Bay’s hotel curb and they boys immediately file out. The hotel is beautiful and Blaine looks around at the ponds framing the entrance. Wesley and Mike grab both of Blaine’s arms and drag him into the place where there’s a sign announcing the main entrance to the Shark Reef.

_(Wesley and Mike)…We staked out on a mission to find our inner peace. Make it everlasting, so nothing’s incomplete. It’s easy being with you, sacred simplicity. As long as we’re together, there’s no place I’d rather be…_

Elliott pushes Artie’s chair, followed by Sam. The three friends join Wesley, Mike and Blaine who are already walking inside the reef and purchasing their tickets.

_(Artie, Elliott and Sam)…With every step we take, Kyoto to The Bay, strolling so casually. We’re different and the same, get you another name. Switch up the batteries…_

Kurt and the girls go from one shop to the other in the blink of an eye. Kurt is laughing and smiling the whole time, his earlier anger for not following his list has seemed to vanish. He’s having so much fun and he just hopes his fiance is too. Brittany hugs Kurt from behind, tugging on the left side of his hip causing him to turn around. She takes his hand in hers as the two spin and shake, dancing in the middle of the aisle. Santana stands next to Quinn and Tina and looks to Kurt and Brittany acting as dorks as they shimmy along. Laughing, she makes her way to the two and playfully gives Kurt a glare while grabbing her fiance’s hand successfully stealing her away from Kurt so they could dance together causing Kurt to laugh and clap along.

_(Brittany and Santana)…If you gave me a chance I would take it. It’s a shot in the dark but I’ll make it. Know with all of your heart, you can’t shake me. When I am with you, there’s no place I’d rather be…_

Blaine skips as him and the boys enter the aquarium. To his left is a huge rock, posing as a sign that reads _‘Welcome to the shark reef aquarium. Come explore this ancient sunken temple’_. Artie claps excitedly before he starts to wheel inside the underwater passage. Blaine points at the glass in front of them, showing a big shark coming their way. He calls Sam and Mike to join him pulling out his phone once again and taking pictures, wanting to document his spontaneous adventure with his friends to show his fiance later. The three boys pose as Elliott grabs Blaine’s phone and snaps the picture as him and Blaine make funny faces. When he turns the phone around to look at the picture he just took he laughs seeing that Artie and Wesley photobombed it by making duck like faces behind them. Blaine burst into laughter along with the rest of they guys. This may not have been he originally thought this trip was going to turn out but he has to admit he is having a great time.  

_(Blaine and the boys)…N-n-n-no, no, no, no place I’d rather be, N-n-n-no, no, no, no place I’d rather be, N-n-n-no, no, no, no place I’d rather be…_

Kurt and the girls smile as they snap a few pictures at the Bally’s casino and Santana orders a round of cocktails. Kurt frowns slightly but, Santana rolls her eyes and informs him the drinks are alcohol free. The blue-eyed man grabs a blue drink from the tray and clinks the glass with his friends as they yell out a toast for the soon to be married man. Madison brings her glass to her lips and takes a sip as she holds a small video camera in her left hand. Unbeknown to Kurt she has been filming his reaction to their spontaneous adventures the whole time.

Blaine and the boys keep walking along the big never ending underwater passage while they take picture with the giant turtles, the colorful and strange looking fishes, and the impressive sharks. Even though they passed a sign saying video cameras are not allowed, Artie managed to sneak his in with him and has been videotaping Blaine and the guys throughout the day.

_(All)…When I am with you, there’s no place I’d rather be…Hmmmmmmmmmmmm, hooooooooooooooooo. Be, be, be, be, be, be, be, be, be, … Yeah-e-yeah-e-yeah-e-yeah-e-yeah, yeah, yeah…_

Kurt and the girls stand up from the bar stools and walk out to Jubilee theater. As soon as they enter Rachel, Mercedes, Santana and Kurt who are addicted to the spotlight run to the stage and start to dance around. The three blondes from the group and Tina, just look at them from afar laughing at their friends antics before smiling at each other and singing together.

_(Quinn, Madison, Brittany and Tina)…If you gave me a chance I would take it. It’s a shot in the dark but I’ll make it. Know with all of your heart, you can’t shake me. When I am with you, there’s no place I’d rather be…_

Both groups keep enjoying themselves as they explore the amazingness that Las Vegas has to offer them while out with their half of the gang. Blaine and the boys all lean up close to a glass, staring inside at a few scaly reptiles; while Kurt and the girls watch a short play at the dark theater.

_(All)…N-n-n-no, no, no, no place I’d rather be, N-n-n-no, no, no, no place I’d rather be, N-n-n-no, no, no, no place I’d rather be…_

When the play is over, Kurt gushes and thanks the girls for kidnapping him and forcing him to have a great time at unplanned events and pulls them all in for a group hug. Blaine looks between all his buddies and playfully gives them each a high five before laughing and pulling them in for a huge, thanking them as well.

_(All)…When I am with you, there’s no place I’d rather be…_

The songs comes to an end as both groups take a seat to rest. Kurt and the girls go to Nosh, a cafe located at the main entrance, next to the theater. While Blaine, along with the boys walk to the Shark Reef Snack Stand and grab a few snacks. They both take a quick peek at the time and smiling realizing how much time has already passed. Time really does fly when you’re having fun with friends.

Kurt, Mercedes, Rachel, Brittany, Santana, Madison, Quinn and Tina, are sitting at a big table at the Nosh cafe resting their now tired legs and having drinks and snacks. After ordering and having all their drinks in front of them, Rachel starts the conversation.

“So Kurt, any big plans for the future? Now that you got promoted at Vogue are you going to finish school at NYADA?” The brunette asks.

Kurt takes a sip from his nonfat mocha before answering. “Well I do believe that my future lays somewhere between Broadway and Vogue, so for now I am going to finish school to have a degree to fall back on. But fashion is also a big passion of mine and I’m good at it. So I think that maybe I could continue doing both? I don’t know, we’ll see…”

“But you can’t be fully committed if you’re between two different things, I mean look at what happened to me with Broadway and the T.V. show…” Rachel says, licking her lips after taking a drink from her tea.

“I know that…But I think that if I try hard, I can end up doing both. I mean, maybe I never get this _‘big tours around the world’_ Broadway role, but I’ll continue performing every now and then and I’ll try to keep getting better at Vogue.”

Mercedes gives her friend an encouraging smile because she’s sure that if there’s someone capable of achieving those big dreams, is the person seated in front of her. Her lifetime friend, Kurt Hummel. “I think you can do both Kurt. You’re a warrior so don’t give up on your dreams. Besides I’m sure your soon-to-be will be there supporting you along the way…”

“I know…” Kurt says smiling.

“Speaking about Blaine…Ummm.” Quinn hesitates. “I heard about what happened to him…Is he okay now?”

Kurt turns around and gives Tina a killing look, before looking back at Quinn. “Yeah he’s better now. We’re still fighting against it, but we’re winning this war…”

“He’s doing a great job, if you guys could see how Kurt’s taking care of him…It’s adorable!” Madison says. She has been around long enough to witness Kurt’s dedication towards his soon to be.

The girls smile and Mercedes asks, “So I’m assuming all the bad stuff is now in the past and you two are finally in your happy place?”

Kurt nods frantically. “Oh Yes we are! I think it’s safe to say that we’re finally there! Sometimes we’re like an old married couple, but we’re fine…If you know what I mean.”

Rachel scrunches her eyebrows in confusion. “What do you mean by an old married couple? Aren’t you two happy?”

Kurt blushes a little, but feeling close enough to talk about the topic with his friends, he hesitantly starts, “You know…Ummm…Sometimes I would like to spice up things a little, sexually speaking…”

“Kurt! You guys are getting married you should feel comfortable enough to bring new stuff to the table.” Quinn states confidently.

Santana makes a gagging noise and under her breath she says to herself, “I’m gonna be sick.”

Brittany not noticing her fiance’s disgusted face quickly joins in the conversation offering her own experiences, “Yeah Kurt, just last week I got San to try b–”

Santana opens her eyes widely and cups her hand around Brittany’s mouth trying to stop her for confessing personal details on new things they tried last week. “Okay Britt! I think he gets it! No need to spill the personal stuff.” She hides her panic behind a light chuckle.

Mercedes gets a bit uncomfortable with the whole sex topic and trying to change the subject, she jumps in with a long “Anywayssssss!” she drags out, drawing the attention towards her and asking, “So Kurt have you and Blaine had _‘the talk_ ’ yet?”

Looking confused at his diva friend, Kurt asks, “What talk?”

Mercedes smiles a big smile. “You know the _‘Do you want kids’_ talk?”

Kurt blushes. Madison, noticing Kurt’s red cheeks, claps her hands excitedly. “Ohhhh! Your body is betraying you! Your cheeks are flushed. That’s a yes, isn’t it?”

The whole group starts to laugh as Kurt’s cheeks turn a deeper crimson.

“So do you?” Quinn inquires impatiently.

Still blushing, Kurt answers. “Well yes we do. We had this conversation a few weeks ago. But you know, not yet, we are still getting our careers started and everything. But yes, eventually I think we will want to have kids.”

Rachel claps excitedly, “Oh my God! Are you guys adopting or using a surrogate?”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Stop right there Rachel. We haven’t talked about that okay? We just talked about family and that was it!” Kurt immediately stops his friend from getting too far ahead of herself.

Quinn laughs and takes a sip from her coffee, “Well I already told you this, but if you guys use the surrogate way I can donate the egg.” She states, ignoring all the shocked looks from the rest of the table.

Kurt blushes again and ducks his head to hide his red cheeks as all his friends fall into separate conversations about their futures as well. ‘ _Why do all the conversations before any wedding always have to be about having kids?’_ He thinks to himself as a giddy smile plays at his lips as he thinks about his future.

Blaine and Mike are leaning against the underwater passage’s main entrance waiting for Artie, Sam, Wesley and Elliott to finish buying a few things in the Snack stand in front of them. Mike is taking some pictures of his surroundings and between takes he asks, “So what’s your big plan Blaine? I mean besides getting married, what else are you doing with your life?”

“I don’t know…I’ve been thinking a lot about that and first, I want to finish college and then I really want to try to pursue becoming a singer…Performing and music is a big part of my life, I love it.”

Wesley walks back from the snack stand and hands Blaine a bottle of water, leaning up against the wall with the others and overhearing their conversation, he frowns slightly confused. He has heard a lot about the former Glee kids lives from Rachel and her love of knowing all about her friends future plans. Unable to contain his curiosity, he pipes in. “Sorry for intruding but…Ummm…I thought you wanted to be an actor? Well at least that’s what Rachel said.”

“Yeah, that was the original plan, but since I started doing these small performances with June, I feel that I found my true passion! I love how I feel when I’m on the stage with all the people looking at me and singing along with me. It’s definitely what I want to do for the rest of my life!” Blaine exclaims excitedly as he twists the top off the plastic water bottle and quickly brings it to his lips taking a large gulp.

Artie, Sam and Elliott walk up and join the small conversation and the new Glee Club teacher asks, “What were you guys talking about?”

“Oh nothing! Just that Blaine here wants to be a singer!” Mike replies giving Blaine a pat on the shoulder.

“A singer!? And what about the Oscar? I was counting on casting you in one of my films!” Artie exclaims.

“You can always cast me, I mean you can write a musical and my future husband and I can be your stars…” Blaine tries with a huge smile on his face.

“I’m an actor too you know? I can be your star too.” Wesley chirps with a crooked grin.

“I can act too! I’m not that bad and I do some really good impressions.” Sam pipes in.

“And I can dance and choreograph and yeah I can try to sing and act too!” Mike says, not wanting to be left behind.

“Guys! Guys! There’s no need to fight for the roles. There will always be roles for my friends in all my films…”

The group of friends smile at each other and Mike, leaning over, whisper into Blaine’s ear, “Seriously, Blaine if you ever need a backup dancer you know where I live and you have my number…” He trails off before giving him a thumbs up.

Blaine laughs and whispers back, “Sure! Count on it! It would be like old times.”

The guys walk to the next and final part of the underwater passage where the tank displays a variety of colorful fishes. The group of friends point out random fish to each other while making faces against the glass. Artie takes out his camera once again and starts to film as the rest of his friends lean against the side railing. Elliott, who’s standing next to Blaine, crosses his ankles and casually asks, “So I haven’t talked about this with Kurt, because I don’t know how to bring this up without him freaking out and running away, but ummm…I’m curious, have you guys talked about things you want in the future? I know you guys aren’t married yet, but have you talked about kids?”

“You know? I was as worried as you are when I first asked him. I thought he was going to stick his fingers in his ears and start screaming _‘La, la, la’_ like he did back in high school, but he proved me wrong. As usual…” Blaine laughs at the memory of the _‘talk’_ he had a while back with Kurt. “I’m not sure why I was so worried to bring it up to him. I guess I just thought that with how clean and how he likes to be in control of every situation that he wouldn’t want kids and I love kids! So yeah I was pretty afraid to bring that card to the table…But one night I finally got the nerve to bring it up and turns out he definitely wants kids too.”

“That’s good. I know you two are going to be great parents someday…” Elliott says giving Blaine a small pat on the back.

“You think?” Blaine asks genuinely curious.

“I’m sure!”  Elliott smiles and Blaine bows his head to hide his now red cheeks.

“I agree!” Sam pipes in follow with _‘me too’s’_ from all the other guys.

Blaine looks up at his friends and smiles at them warmly. “Thanks guys, this actually means a lot. I mean I know we are nowhere near ready to have kids right now, but when the day does come, I’m sure it’ll be amazing”

“Of course it will, I’m looking forward for the day I can meet your kids.” Mike jokes. “I can picture a mini Kurt sashaying around some unrehearsed choreography while one of his brothers or sisters plays the piano because his talented dads couldn’t help themselves and taught their kids everything they could.”

They all laugh at that imaginary scenario and keep walking until they reach the end of the long underwater passage. Noticing that their time is almost up and that they’ll have to go back to the hotel. Sam grabs Blaine from the arm and pulls him to the side to ask something more privately. “Hey buddy…So ummmm…How are things going on with your dad? I’m still impressed that he agreed to pay for this trip.”

“He’s still saying that this is wrong and the biggest mistake I’ll ever make, but I guess he will always say that no matter how old I am or anything. I think that for him me being gay is what’s wrong…” Blaine says unable to hide the hint of sadness in his voice.

“I’m sorry to hear that bud, and ummm…Did you ask him about the dinner you told me about?” Sam inquires.

“Yeah, I told him…but I’m still working on that…It has not been easy.” Blaine replies shrugging defeated.

Sam gives his friend a warmly smile. “Don’t worry, I’m sure everything is going to be fine”

“I hope…” Blaine says quietly as they reach their friends and climb into the cabs to head back to the hotel. Suddenly he can’t wait to see his soon to be husband.

After a long fun day of exploring the Sin City with their friends, the two groups meet up in the Caesar’s Palace main entrance. The moment the two groups spot each other, Blaine walks over to Kurt and with a huge smile on his face, he says, “Hey you! Did you miss me? Did you have fun with the girls?”

Kurt gives his soon-to-be a quick _hello_ kiss before responding. “Yes to the first, and yes to the second. We actually had a blast shopping and exploring the boutiques. I bought one or two things I’m sure you’re going to love! And what about you manly men, what did you guys do? Quinn just told me Sam was taking you someplace but they didn’t know where…”

Blaine runs his hands up and down his fiance’s upper arms, “Oh well, us manly men went to the Shark Reef. It was really cool, the place is amazing, but what I liked even more was to actually have some time to just catch up with all the guys, though I missed you like crazy!”

“I missed you too!” Kurt says leaning over to kiss his fiance’s soft lips. Kurt doesn’t know if it’s the city, or the fact that they are in their bachelor party, but he’s more affectionate than usual and just wants to have Blaine by his side 24/7.

Rachel clears her throat and speaks up. “Guys! Ummm…Get a room!” She says sarcastically with a smirk.

Blaine and Kurt look to each other bashfully for getting caught up in the moment, almost forgetting about the people around them.

“Oh, leave them alone!” Quinn chirps. “They are young, in love…And…In the city of sin! Let them be!”

They all laugh and make their way to the hotel’s lobby while talking amongst themselves in whispered voices. Between all the conversations going on at the same time, nobody notices the extra person that now is walking along with them. This new mysterious member presses his lips together, trying to suppress a laugh that’s threatening to escape. He raises his arm slowly and taps on Quinn’s shoulder.

Quinn turns around to see who it is and her jaw drops. There, standing in his uniform, still fresh off the plane, is the love of her life…Noah Puckerman. She is so shocked that without saying a word, she just jumps into his arms and wraps her arms around his neck, nestling her head in his shoulder and crying happy tears.

“I can believe you’re here!” Quinn says between kisses and tears.

Puck simply shrugs and smiles standing there and holding his girlfriend tight. He’s savoring the moment because it has been way too long since he held her in his arms. In the background, the rest of the group are standing and watching the beautiful scene unfold before them with smiles on their faces.

After the long hug and the _hello_ kisses between the two lovers end, Quinn leads Puck over to where the rest of the group is standing. Their friends are all wearing happy smiles and clapping for Puck’s return, except Tina, whose tears are quickly spilling out of her eyes and rolling down her cheeks as she takes in shuddered breaths. Puck takes a step forward and hugs her, whispering, “Don’t cry Tina, he’s doing great over there. You should be proud!”

Tina smiles back and whispers a _‘Thank you’_ while wiping her tears.

Puck looks around at the rest of his friends and exclaims, “Hey everybody!” waving as they all laugh at his antics.

Blaine walks up to him and gives him a hug. “It’s good to have you back Puck. I’m glad you’re here. Thanks for coming!”

“I couldn’t miss this party for anything in the world! I am accidentally the reason why you two met. If I had never sent Kurt to spy on the competition, then we wouldn’t be here today…” He smiles at both Kurt and Blaine. Blaine laughs and Puck whispers into the hazel-eyed man ear, “…You can thank me when Kurt says _I do_ or you know in you wedding vows or something.” He lifts a shoulder in a shrug.

Blaine laughs again and gives Puck a friendly pat on the back as Santana walks over them. Puck smiles at the Latina and gives her a big puck-style hug.

“Yeah, yeah…It’s nice to see you. I’m glad you made it out alive.” Santana says trying not to sound emotionally invested while lightly patting his back giving him the _hugs over_ tap.

Puck laughs at her, knowing how she works and what she was really trying to say. “Yeah, I missed you too Lopez…And I heard that congratulations are in order! You finally pulled your head out of your ass and proposed to beautiful Brittany!”

“You know, I want to be mad at you and say so many mean and equally hilarious things to that, ‘ _I’m oh so charming and my face is stuck in this I’m constipated’,_ look you seem to always have on your face but, I can’t right now. I guess it’s because I’m partially happy that you’re here…” She trails off before shifting her eyes between his, having a silent knowing conversation with him. A small smile spreads across tan cheeks and she quickly adds, “And thank you for the congratulations!” Santana walks over to Brittany and takes her hand with her own as Brittany quickly greets Puck with kisses to the cheek.

After a round of _‘hello’s’_ , _‘I’m glad you’re here’_ , _‘it’s so nice to see you’,_ Puck speaks again, “It’s so nice to see you all, really guys, but…Ummm…Did we pick up a few strays? Because there are one or two people here I don’t think I know unless they’ve changed that much since high school.” His shoulders shake as he laughs at his own joke.

Rachel steps up and quickly introduces Wesley to Puck. The two men shake hands and Wesley being the gentleman he always is, says, “Hi, nice to meet you I’m Wesley Grey! I’m Rachel’s boyfriend and though we don’t know each other I think it’s my duty as an American citizen to thank you for your service.”

“Thank you man, my name is Noah, Noah Puckerman.” He states in his professional military tone.

The rest of the group turns around to look at their friend with confused expressions. _Noah_ sounded so weird coming from his mouth, it sounded so sophisticated. _‘The military really does change a person’_ they all think.

Puck, noticing his friends reactions, quickly covers up. “But you can call me Puck, they all do.” He finishes and looking back to his friends, “Sorry new habit, trying to tell a commanding officer to call you _‘Puck’_ never ended good.”

A few chuckles escape as they all could imagine how that scenario played out for him. Puck then turns and notices the beautiful new blonde of the group. “And who might this lovely lady be?” He questions.

Artie rolls forward and says, “That would be my girlfriend and I really like her so I’d appreciate if you don’t sleep with this one.”

“Wow, Artie! My man! Score!” He bumps Artie and then goes and introduces himself to Madison who does the same back adding a handshake.

Puck looks at the last unfamiliar face and asks, “And you are?”

“Kurt’s band-mate! Elliott Gilbert”

Puck smiles and shaking hands with him he adds, “Nice to meet you Kurt’s band-mate!”

Once Puck’s sure to know all the faces on the group, he grabs his girlfriend’s hand and turning to face the two soon-to-be husbands, he exclaims, “So…what are we waiting for? Are we having a party or what?”

The night starts and with that all the fun. Kurt, Blaine, Puck, Quinn, Elliott, Santana, Brittany, Artie, Madison, Rachel, Wesley, Mike, Tina, Sam and Mercedes are all gather outside the Cosmopolitan casino after climbing out from 4 yellow cabs.

“Look at that!” Kurt exclaims excitedly while pointing to the Cosmopolitan’s Resort casino magnificent facade. With all the palm trees framing the entrance and the incredible neon lights illuminating the panel framed entranced, the guys can help but gasp in awe. The place looks amazing as pretty much every single corner of this city. _Can this city be any more luxurious?_

Quickly making their ways inside the building, the group of friends walk to the Casino’s bar to officially start the bachelor’s party. Puck asks for a round of drinks and the bartender immediately starts to take out a lot of tequila shot glasses and fill them with the dangerously addictive drink.

Kurt looks at the drink Puck is handing him, and shaking his head he says, “I’m not going to drink that!”

“Of course you are!” Puck immediately replies pushing the drink in front of him.

“Come on Kurt! Live a little! This is the last party you’ll have before you’re a married man! That’s why people have these parties! So drink up and let loose!” Sam pipes in.

Kurt, looks at Blaine and his fiance just silently nods giving him so encouragement. The blue-eyed man, who’s willing to have the time of his life, finally agrees. “Okay one shot! Just one shot!”

Everybody gets excited and Artie takes out his camera to record Kurt taking the shot of the strongest tequila they have in the bar. Kurt looks at the gold liquid and closing his eyes he takes it in one gulp.

“Ahhhh this thing burns!” He exclaims.

Blaine laughs at his-soon-to-be cuteness and Mercedes chirps, “Take another one and it won’t burn, I promise!”

Kurt rolls his eyes, but takes the new shot his diva friend is offering him. Without realizing it, he starts to drink one shot next to the other, and the last thing he knows, he’s getting a little light headed.

“See guys?” Puck exclaims excited after some time. “That’s the attitude! My friend Kurt here is making us look like cowards! Let’s all get drunk! This party is just getting started!”

They all cheer that idea and after a new round of tequila shots, they all start to spread around the luxurious casino drinking and just having fun.

Sam and Mercedes, who are unusually close to each other, walk to try some luck at the roulette table. Once there, Sam leans over and whispering into Mercedes’ ear, he confesses, “You look stunning tonight! Well you always look stunning, but tonight you’re shining more than those fancy chandeliers hanging above our heads.”

“Sam stop it! You’re drunk…I don’t want you to tell me those things when you’re not even going to remember them tomorrow.” Mercedes lets out a sigh.

“I’m not drunk…” He holds his hands up in defense. “If you haven’t noticed, I just had 2 shots. This is not the alcohol speaking, this is me…Sam. And he’s telling Mercedes Jones that she looks stunning! As usual” The blonde quips with a huge smile on his face.

Mercedes smiles coyly and turns around to the table. She can’t look into Sam’s green eyes without losing herself and less when he’s saying all those things. “Well, thanks but let’s just play, okay?”

“Yeah…Let’s play!” Sam laughs nodding and whispering to himself he adds, “…For now…”

—–

Quinn and Puck are sitting at one of the small lounges. Quinn is seated on Puck’s lap as the Air-Force man is caressing her arm.

“Are you sure you don’t want to play?” Quinn asks as she leans over to lock lips with her man.

“We can play later…Right now I just want to enjoy this little alone time with you. I’ve missed you!” Puck confesses between kisses while hugging his girlfriend tighter. It is only when he’s with her that he notices how much he actually needs her. She’s literally his other half.

“Awww, I’ve missed you too!”

“I love you, Quinn Fabray! I really, really love you!”

“And I love you too, Noah Puckerman. I really, really love you!” She mimics as they both melt into a kiss.

—–

Artie and Elliott are trying some luck at Ultimate Texas Hold’Em table laughing and drinking as Madison and Tina are right next to them playing some game called Three Card Poker. Artie looks over his table and yelling a bit, so the girls can hear him, he says, “Girls! How are you doing? Is the game fun?”

“Yeah it is!” They both reply at the same time without taking their eyes away from the table for only a second.  

Artie and Elliott look at each other and frown. The Texas Hold’Em game is fun, but the girls seems to be having a blast. Just when they are about to move to the next table. The dealer exclaims, “And we have our winners!” Pointing to Elliott and Artie who immediately look at each other still not believing they actually win.

Tina and Madison stand up excited and start to jump up and down cheering the $1,000 dollars prize.

“You won baby!” Madison exclaims excited as Elliott and Artie received their chips. This Vegas experience got better with every passing moment.

—–

Brittany and Santana are by the Blackjack table. Santana keeps frowning trying to catch up with the game, which apparently Brittany understood perfectly.

“Babe…I really, really don’t know what you’re doing.” Santana says.

“It’s easy San, look the objective is to beat the dealer. If your cards total higher than the dealer’s cards without going over 21, you win. However, remember that you are not trying to get close to 21. If your hand or the dealer’s hand goes over 21 you _‘Bust.’_ If you bust you automatically lose. If the dealer busts and you do not then you win. The player must act first. If the player busts she loses regardless if the dealer bust or not…” Brittany explains as if that was not that hard. “Got it?”

“No…” Santana confesses for the millionth time. “Too complicated for me, but you’re doing great babe. Keep doing whatever you’re doing because if you win, we can return home being rich!”

Brittany laughs as she yells, “Bust!” to the player next to her. Santana looks at her with adoration because her fiance was a genius, there was no doubt about that.

Leaning in close to the Latina standing behind her, Brittany whispers, “And if you’re a mathematical genius like me, this game is super easy because you just count the cards.” She looks back to the table, “Hit me.” She says to the dealer. He flips a card and she adds the cards up quickly in her head. She’s at sixteen. Smirking she says, “Hit me.” as she taps on the table. The dealer flips a card and shows a number four card giving her 20. The dealer has down a ten and a five for himself. Flipping another card over, Brittany throws her head back laughing, “Bust!” She says as she scoots the chips from the middle of the table to her right side. Santana laughs and shakes her head, loving watching her fiance’s genius mind at work, even if it was technically illegal.

—–

Mike, Wesley and Rachel are at the Baccarat table. Rachel is biting her nails nervously as Mike and Wesley are playing.

“You can do it guys! Win this hand!” She cheers her boyfriend and friend.

The casino guy turns around Wesley and Mike’s cards and reveals a three of diamonds and an the diamonds’ ace.

“Darn!” Mike exclaims.

“What!? What does that mean? Did we lose?” Rachel asks confused.

“No babe, it means we will have to take a third card and that reduces our chances of winning…” Wesley tries to explain.

“Oh-Okay…” Rachel says not fully understanding how the game works. The casino guy gives the boys the third card turning it around and revealing a three of clubs. Wesley and Mike look at each other mentally counting their cards. They have 7 points out of 9. There’s a huge chance of winning this hand and keep playing.

“Now what?” Rachel asks impatiently.

But before any of the guys can reply, the casino guy turns around the Banker’s cards and reveals a five and seven of clubs and a 2 of diamonds. Wesley and Mike immediately cheer.

“Did we win?” Rachel asks as both, Mike and Wesley nod. “Yay! We win! we win!” The brunette exclaims as she jumps up and down.

—–

Kurt and Blaine are playing at the slot machines. Blaine is frowning his attention completely focused on the getting the jackpot. Kurt who’s standing behind his soon-to-be is squealing excited. He’s extremely happy, and a little drunk.

“Come on honey! You can do it! Hit the jackpot! Hit the jackpot! And we can go to Europe for our honeymoon!” Kurt says.

Blaine burst out laughing and before pulling the lever he asks, “You’re having fun, aren’t you?”

Kurt nods excited leaning over to kiss his fiance and pulling the lever in the process.

“Hey! That was my turn!” Blaine exclaims pouting at his fiance.

“Sorry Honey, but you were taking too long and I need you to be free because I wanna dance!” A very drunk version of Kurt says.

“There’s no dance floor here baby, I thought you didn’t want to go to the club…”

Kurt pouts and whispering into Blaine’s ear, he confesses, “Well, I do now…And I wanna dance with you all night!”

“Okay, we will dance…” Blaine says trying to humor his fiance.

“But I wanna dance now…” Kurt states, wobbling and trying to reach Blaine for support as he starts to dance in the middle of the aisle.

Blaine reaches out and grabs Kurt’s waist. “Easy! You can fall…If you want to dance, then let’s go to dance. Let me gather all our friends and we can go wherever you want though I heard the club of this hotel is actually pretty cool.”

Kurt nods and kisses Blaine again. The effects of the alcohol causing him to be overly affectionate. “Are you going to dance with me?”

“Of course! All night long! Just let me tell our friends okay?”

“Okay…” Kurt replies as Blaine walks a few feet away to inform their friends the change in the original plan. Everybody gets excited because apparently the club was the best idea ever.

After walking to the elevators and reaching the top floor, the group of friends enter the Cosmopolitan’s Nightclub, better known as the Marquee’s. They are immediately welcomed by this overwhelming energetic atmosphere that only a Nightclub in Las Vegas can offer.

“Oh God…This is gonna end badly I can tell…” Elliott whispers. “We’re gonna end up so drunk!”

“That’s right! So, what are we waiting for?” Santana chirps. She’s ready to have fun.

“Let’s party!” Rachel exclaims excited as they enter the place and take a seat at the far end, where two private lounges are reserved. After ordering drinks for everybody, some of the guys hit the dance floor. Kurt practically dragged Blaine with him, since he was the one eager to start dancing.

“I love this place!” Kurt exclaims as he keeps dancing, too close to Blaine’s body.

“I love it too!” Blaine replies back as he looks around. The whole club’s ceiling  is decorated with fabrics illuminated in different shades of blue and purple that create this classic nightclub atmosphere. The disco balls and the changing lights seem to be connected with the beat of the music, creating a space that vibrates with every single song.

The group starts to party hard and between drinks, laughs and a lot of dancing, they lose track of time and dignity. The DJ announces the karaoke hour and immediately Wesley, Sam, Mike, Artie, Puck and Elliott look at each other. It’s their time to shine. Dragging Kurt and Blaine to the small stage the eight guys starts to sing as the notes of Dynamite by Taio Cruz resound through the walls of the club.

_(Wesley)…I throw my hands up in the air sometimes, saying ayo! Gotta let go! I wanna celebrate and live my life, saying ayo! Baby let’s go!…_

Wes, taking full advantage of his natural charisma grabs the microphone and starts to sing as the rest of the group dances around him. The people gathered in the club immediately turns around because they guys who took the stage seem to know what they are doing.

_(Elliott)…I came to dance, dance, dance, dance. I hit the floor ’cause that’s my plans, plans, plans, plans. I’m wearing all my favorite brands, brands, brands, brands. Give me some space for both my hands, hands, hands, hands…Yeah, yeah…_

Giving a step to the front and taking the second microphone, Elliott starts to sing showing why he was a current member of _One Three Hill_. They boy can sing.

_(Sam)…’Cause it’s goes on and on and on. And it goes on and on and on yeah…_

Sam while giving his best body moves grabs a new microphone and helps his friends with the song. Meanwhile in the dancefloor the rest of the girls start to gather together.

_(Artie)…I throw my hands up in the air sometimes, saying ayo. Gotta let go! I wanna celebrate and live my life, saying ayo. Baby, let’s go…_

Artie starts to sing raising his hands and inviting the rest of the people gather around the club to do the same. When the people actually raise their hands, the group of friends look at each other and smile.

_(Blaine)…’Cause we gon’ rock this club, we gon’ go all night. We gon’ light it up like it’s dynamite. ‘Cause I told you once, now I told you twice. We gon’ light it up like it’s dynamite…_

Blaine grabbing his fiance’s hand takes Wesley’s microphone and takes the lead in the next line. Kurt is looking at him the whole time as if nobody else excited for him that night.

_(Kurt)…I came to move, move, move, move. Get out the way of me and my crew, crew, crew, crew. I’m in the club so I’m gonna do, do, do, do. Just whatever I came here to do, do, do, do…Yeah, yeah…_

Blaine moves the microphone from his mouth to Kurt’s and the blue eyed guy surely encourage by all the alcohol he had ingested starts to dance and sing around his fiance who just looks at him with awe.

_(Sam)…’Cause it’s goes on and on and on. And It goes on and on and on yeah…_

Sam takes a step to the front and starts to move his body showing why he was one a stripper. Mercedes screams excited as Rachel, Brittany, Santana, Tina, Madison and Quinn join her.

_(Puck)…I throw my hands up in the air sometimes, saying ayo. Gotta let go! I wanna celebrate and live my life, saying ayo. Baby, let’s go!…_

Puck noticing that the girls are now in front row, takes the microphone and winking at his girlfriend he starts to sing.

_(Mike)…’Cause we gon’ rock this club, we gon’ go all night. We gon’ light it up like it’s dynamite. ‘Cause I told you once, now I told you twice. We gon’ light it up like it’s dynamite…_

The group of friends give Mike a microphone who very doubtfully takes it and starts to sing, showing that although he’s not the strongest voice in the group, he knows how to sing.

_(Artie)…I’m gonna take it all night….I’m gonna be the last one standing. I drove around like I’m gonna be the last one landing. ‘Cause I-I-I believe it and I-I-I, I just want it all. I just want it all. I’m gonna put my hands in the air. Ha-hands in the air, put your hands in the air-air-air-air-air-air-air-air…_

Artie wheels his chair to the front and while the rest of the guys dance around him, he takes the lead in the next part of the song. encouraging his friends to song along with him once they reach the last chorus.

_(All)…I throw my hands up in the air sometimes, saying ayo. Gotta let go! I wanna celebrate and live my life, saying ayo. Baby, let’s go!…_

The lights start to change indicating the song is almost over and while the last notes start to play they all join their voices one last time, pouring their hearts out as the literally light up the club as if it was dynamite.

_(All)…’Cause we gon’ rock this club we gon’ go all night. We gon’ light it up like it’s dynamite. ‘Cause I told you once now I told you twice. We gon’ light it up like it’s dynamite…_

When the song comes to an end, the whole club bursts into cheers because that was good. The talented guys gave a great performance.

“Wow guys!” Tina exclaims once they are all back in the small lounges. “You should do that more often! You guys killed that song!”

“Male power!” Sam chirps as he takes a seat next to Mercedes.

“Tina is right we should do that more often!” Artie exclaims still excited by the powerful performance. “I missed doing stuff like this.”

“Yeah, totally” Wesley agrees. “I’ve never enjoyed performing like I did tonight! You guys are super talented!”

Puck raises his glass and proposing a toast he adds, “To awesome performances, to Vegas and to Kurt and Blaine!”

“To Kurt and Blaine!” They all cheer as the drinks start to flow one after the other.

Past midnight, as some of guys keep dancing, some others are seated by the lounge enjoying some drinks. Kurt and Blaine are the only men there, they are hugging each other as they pretend to listen to what Rachel is saying.

“Seriously guys! My director told me that and when he says something like that, he’s usually right so I don’t know what to think…What do you guys think I should do?”

Kurt and Blaine look at each other, because yeah they didn’t pay attention. Blaine trying to seize the conversation asks back, “What do you think you should be doing?”

“I don’t know probably I should listen to him, but I don’t know…”

“I think you should listen to him too.” Blaine states not knowing of whom they are talking about.

Just when Rachel is about to keep talking the rest of the girls, just the girls, start to take a seat at the small private lounge. They are all wearing suspicious smiles.

“Why are you laugh–” Blaine is asking, but has to stop because in that moment the girls start to scream as two male strippers come up to the lounge and start to shake their asses in their tight boxers in front of Kurt and Blaine. The soon to be husbands look at each other with confused expressions.

Santana steps in, “You’re welcome!” She raises her eyebrows at the two men, wagging a finger between them then making a little bow.

Blaine looks at his Latina friend with wide eyes and asks, “Male strippers? Seriously Santana!? You don’t even like men.”

Before Santana can reply, Kurt let’s out a pitchy scream and hides his face in Blaine’s chest completely ashamed because the strippers just turned forward showing off his way to tight briefs. Santana laughs at Kurt’s reaction and looking back at Blaine, she replies, “Well they obviously aren’t for me. These two are for your personal enjoyment. Wait a couple more drinks and my fiance will be like my own personal stripper.” She smiles, winking.

“Hey!” Brittany says trying to sound offended but knowing the truth. They didn’t call her the _stripper drunk_ for nothing. Santana just leans over and kisses her cheek and Brittany smiles at her.

Kurt screams again and covers his eyes. The rest of the girls scream too and Santana, with a grin on her face just adds, “You can thank me later…I’ll go get Artie…He needs to tape this!” Before walking away.

Blaine sighs and takes Kurt’s hand. The blue-eyed guy looks at him and they both blushed. _‘What was Santana thinking?’_ They both think to themselves as Kurt leans over and gives a quick peck on the lips to his fiance before they both return their attention to the very attractive men dancing in front of them. They are in Vegas, so perhaps the are going to thank Santana later after all. They both bashfully turn their heads as they watch the men lean back and flex their abs.

—–

The night flows smoothly and after some time Tina walks to the lounge and looks around. Santana is the only one there apparently taking a quick sip of her drink.

“San…Where are Blaine and Kurt? I haven’t seen them in a while.”

Santana looks around and says, “I don’t know where they are…They were here like half an hour ago…” She says pointing to the other private lounge. “Maybe they are still there.” She adds running the small curtains that covered every lounge and revealing a very boy on boy version of Kurt and Blaine. “Oh my God! Gross!” Santana exclaims closing her eyes and trying to push the curtain back.

“Kurt! Blaine!” Tina exclaims alarmed because her friends are in a very compromising position.

“Get out!” Blaine exclaims as Kurt ducks his head under his fiance’s collarbone.

Santana successfully closes the curtains again and looks at Tina with a concerned expression. “I better get drunk, otherwise I won’t be able to erase that image from my memory…”  She confesses.

Tina nods as the two girls walk to the bar and order a new round of margaritas.

Kurt and Blaine are at their room sleeping. The clock reads, 6:30am they have been sleeping for almost half an hour when suddenly Kurt snaps his eyes open and stumbling over the sheets, gets out of bed and runs to the bathroom. Blaine opens his eyes too and looks around confused.

“Kurt?” He murmurs, when he notices that his fiance is not in bed. Standing up, he stops for a minute and listens some sounds coming out from the bathroom. Making his way to the huge white wooden doors that are slightly open he steps into the bathroom and finds Kurt leaning over the toilet.

“Are you okay?” Blaine asks with a concerned voice.

Kurt turns around and gives his fiance a _‘Are you kidding me?’_ look with those blue eyes that right now are darker than usual.

Blaine smiles warmly at him and asks again. “Do you want me to do something for you?”

“What about if you never let me drink, ever again?” Kurt snaps with sarcasm evident in his voice.

Blaine suppresses the smile that’s threatening to come out any minute now and with a sweet voice he asks, “Do you want some water?”

Kurt just nods and Blaine walks to the suite’s kitchen to fetch his future husband to be a glass of sparkling water. _‘In sickness and in health’_ He thinks to himself as he returns to the master room.

When he opens the door he finds Kurt already lying in their bed. Taking a seat next to him, Blaine hands him the glass of water. “Here take this. It will help…”

Kurt sits up and looks at the water with disgust. “Thanks…”

Blaine starts to rub Kurt’s back as the blue-eyed man drinks some water and later rest his head on Blaine’s chest. Blaine smiles and they stay like that for a couple of minutes.

After some time Kurt breaks the silence. “Why did you let me drink that much?”

Blaine lets out a playful laugh before answering. “Because one, you were having so much fun and two, because you are extremely cute and affectionate when you’re drunk. I can’t say I don’t like that side of you…It’s pretty sexy.” Blaine bites his lips at the memories from the night before flash through his mind.

Kurt rolls his eyes and hits Blaine in the stomach.

“Ouch! That’s domestic violence!” Blaine exclaims trying to fake being in pain, and not succeeding as a smile comes out of his lips.

Kurt grumbles, “No! That’s not domestic violence, that’s _‘Stop making fun of me!’_ violence!”

Blaine laughs again, “I’m not making fun of you babe, but it’s true you’re extremely cute when you’re drunk!”

Kurt grumbles again and looking into hazel eyes he says, “At least I’m cute and just affectionate with you when I’m drunk and I’m not going around kissing girls!”

Blaine rolls his eyes smiling playfully and says, “That was a one time thing! When are you going to stop bringing that up, Huh?”

Kurt rest his head against Blaine’s chest again and murmurs, “Ummm I don’t know…Maybe until death do us part…” As he slowly falls asleep.

Blaine smiles and caressing his fiance’s arm he whispers, “Until death do us part…” As he closes his eyes and falls asleep too.

After the intense party they all had the night before at the casino and nightclub at the Cosmopolitan resort & Casino, the group starts to slowly gather for _‘breakfast’_ past noon. Kurt and Blaine walk out the elevator’s doors and giving a step into lobby Kurt whispers, “Gosh the light is so bright!”

Blaine nods as he closes his eyes to avoid the light from blinding him. “Yeah…How’s your head?”

“Still killing me…But I’m fine, let’s go have something to eat. I’m starving…”

Kurt and Blaine reach the table and once they have a closer look into their friend’s faces they realize they are not the only ones suffering the terrible side effects of this infamous city. Elliott looks at the soon to be husbands and says, “Good morning, Lovebirds”

“Hi, Elliott” They guys reply at the same time.

Elliott looking at the huge dark circles under Kurt’s eyes says, “You look awful…I bet you don’t want to dance now, am I right? Though I need to admit, you’re pretty funny when you’re drunk!”

Kurt doesn’t reply and just hits Elliott in the head.

“Not in my head Kurt! It’s killing me!” Elliott complains.

“Then stop making fun of me!” Kurt demands as they take a seat at the huge table.

The waiter arrives and pours two glasses of orange juice for the boys and Kurt immediately grabs his, trying to quench his dry throat.

“Oh my God! This is like _‘life’_ served in a glass!” He exclaims feeling the sweet drink going all the way down through his throat. Blaine laughs at the cuteness of his fiance and gives him a quick peck on the cheek. Artie takes out his camera and starts filming again. Kurt noticing the camera asks, “You didn’t film last night, did you?”

Artie laughs wickedly. “Of course I did, my friend!”

Kurt’s eyes open wide as he freaks out, “Artie! You need to wipe that tape immediately!”  He says wagging a finger in his friends direction.

Artie laughs shaking his head. “Don’t count on it Kurt! This tape is pure gold. I have blackmailing material of everybody in here. I have you all under my command for let’s say the next 50 years…”

Kurt rolls his eyes and leans his head over his fiance’s shoulder resigned to hear about that tape for the rest of his life. He takes some minutes just to rest his head on Blaine’s very comfy shoulder and then, raising it up he notices that Mercedes and Sam are too close to be just friends. Frowning, he asks, “What did I miss?”

Sam smiles and shrugging he says, “Nothing new…Everyone in here knew this would happen sooner or later.”

Kurt smiles as he sees his diva friend smiling broadly, “Well I’m glad it was sooner rather than later. I’m happy for you guys.”

Sam laughs and looking around the table he confesses, “What I can say? Vegas…”

Rachel smiles at their friends and with her usual tact, she adds, “Lovely, we’re glad for you guys, but now what? We completely ignored Kurt and Blaine’s itinerary yesterday, but we still have one day to stay so maybe we could go out and do some stuff?”

Quinn and Puck look between each other before Puck raises a fist saying, “Yeah, let’s use the time we have left!”

Blaine looks at Kurt and asks, “What do you want to do?”

Kurt frowns thinking. “I don’t know, let me think…You have any ideas?”

Blaine shrugs too. ”I don’t know either.”

But Kurt’s face suddenly lights up and excited he exclaims, “The Smith Center of Performing Arts!”

Blaine smiles broadly at his fiance and whispers “You read my mind…”

Santana stands up and claps her hands making them all to frown in discomfort at the awful sound. “Don’t be such a lady! Drink some more orange juice take two advils and you’ll be all fresh! Trust me! And now let’s go! We have a city to conquer!” She stands up and starts to walk away, looking back over her shoulder at the table.

The group doesn’t move and the Latina immediately states, “You guys have 15 minutes to finish your breakfast and be ready at the main door. I’m not kidding! Hurry up! 15 minutes at the main door! Oh-and by the way Blaine, I rented a couple of limousines for the day…”

Taking a sip of her tall glass of milk, Brittany licks her lips as she puts it down. With raised eyebrows she looks at the rest of the table, “She’s serious. So come on guys let’s go!” The group start to dig into the food on their plate while quickly washing it down with their cold beverages wanting to quickly start their new day.

Fifteen minutes later, once everyone was fed, dressed and ready to go, the group of friends started to gather at the Caesar’s Palace main entrance.

“You weren’t joking about the limos…” Blaine whispers looking at the two eccentric black limousines parked in front of them.

“Of course not, My Little Pony, I never joke…Technically.” Santana replies climbing into the first limousine.

The group divides and enters both limousines. Santana, Brittany, Kurt, Blaine, Mike, Sam and Mercedes in the first car, and Quinn, Puck, Tina, Artie, Madison, Elliott, Rachel and Wesley in the second one, and they make it to the Smith Center of Performing Arts where they watch _Dixie’s Tupperware Party,_ some show about a lady named Dixie Longate, who packs up her Tupperware catalogues, leaves her children in an Alabama trailer park and takes off around the country throwing good old fashioned Tupperware Parties filled with outrageously funny tales, heartfelt accounts and free giveaways.

After leaving the show the group of friends decide to go back to the hotel and enjoy some leisure  time together there.

“So…What if we all go back and meet back at the hotel’s pool? Later at night we can hit one of the other casinos, right?” Puck suggests.

“Yeah! That sounds great!” They all agree as they climb back into their respective spot in the limousines.  

As they are driving back to the hotel Santana looks out the window while holding Brittany’s hand in her lap. She can’t help but think how perfect her life has turned out. To her, the only thing left to top off her amazing life is the day she got to say _‘I do’_ to the stunning blonde who sits on her left with her head on her shoulder. As that thought crosses her mind the limo drive past a 24 hour chapel. Just then it dawns on her, she is sitting next to the love of her life. The one woman she wants to be with forever and they are in Las Vegas. How or why she didn’t think of it before is beyond her. She turns her head from the view out the window to the most beautiful view she’s ever seen; the woman sitting beside her. “Britt?” She speaks softly, wondering if the blonde was still awake.

She gets her answer when Brittany lifts her head from her shoulder and looks in her eyes. The moment those piercing blue eyes meet the warm brown ones of her own she knows that’s she doing the right thing. She is one hundred percent sure she doesn’t want to wait any longer to be married to this amazing person. “Marry me Britt.”

“What? Didn’t you already propose…Didn’t I say yes?” Brittany frowns confused, questioning her own memory.

Laughing at her fiance, Santana speaks softly to clarify, “Yes you do, but I mean today. Right now, Britt. Will you marry me? I love you more than I could ever express and I don’t want to live one more day without being Mrs. Pierce-Lopez. I know it may seem sudden or rushed but I don’t need a big fancy wedding or anything like that I just need you, for the rest of my life, you’re all I want. I feel like I’ve been waiting for this day my whole life, and I don’t want to wait any longer. Brittany, will you marry me and become my wife today?” She holds her breath after letting out all her feeling to the blonde as she waits for her response, while staring into the deep pool of blue staring back at her.

Brittany who has huge tears in her eyes and a smile across her face, lunges forward and kisses Santana, putting every ounce of love she has for the Latina into the kiss. Brittany pulls back but staying with their lips only an inch apart once oxygen is necessary. She looks into chocolate brown orbs and says, “Of course I’ll marry you! I love you so much!…I feel like my heart is gonna burst from my chest…Oh my God Sanny I think I’m having a heart attack.”Santana laughs as happy tears betray her and roll down her cheeks. “You’re not having a heart attack.” She says giving her fiance another quick kiss, but Brittany pulls back from it quickly.

“What’s wrong?” Santana asks.

“There’s just one problem…”

Santana, looking concerned, asks, “One Problem? What Problem?”

Brittany looks to the other side of the limo where half of their friends are sitting and chatting. Santana follows her eyes and immediately understands what the blonde is talking about.  

Brittany takes a deep breath and looking into Santana’s eyes once again, she asks, “How do we tell them?” as a flash of uncertainty flashes across Santana’s eyes.


	9. New Leaf

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on the Glee Fan Project…Kurt and Blaine had their bachelor party at the one and only Sin City…Vegas! The whole gang was there and between tequila shots, casinos and more tequila shots, they had the time of their lives. Brittany got lost and Santana, who was a bit drunk, thought she had left her, but it turned out that Brittany wasn’t lost she was at the rooftop looking for a mattress…What!? Kurt gave his friends a meticulous planned schedule to explore the city, but everybody ignored it and the girls kidnapped Kurt and the boys did the same with Blaine and took them to some awesome places in the city…sounds like fun, right? Puck surprised everyone, Quinn included, by arriving unnoticed to the hotel still dressed in his army uniform…isn’t he cute? The party started and after hitting a new casino, the group moved to a nightclub where Kurt got drunk, Santana hired two male strippers and everybody had fun. Sam and Mercedes spent a lot of time together and things seem to be different between them…is this the start of their happily ever after? Anyways, the big surprise was that Santana and Brittany decided to get married in the city…are they really getting married? And that’s what you missed on Glee!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s our ninth episode! This episode has a time jump after some important event that takes place at the very beginning. If you read Episode 8 Vegas, you already know what we are talking about, if not we won’t spoil you what’s the big event, but this episode is full of romantic surprises. The Brittana and Samcedes fans should not miss this episode! The whole story takes place right after our last scene in Vegas so if you didn’t read it we encourage you to look back and read our last scenes. Anyways, we hope you enjoy it, as usual there’s a link to the intro video and the Episode 9 playlist of songs at the top of the episode, in case we have included a song that you may not have heard of. Remember that we wrote the characters singing these songs with their own vocal arrangements in mind that’s why some of these songs are covers and some are the originals. We hope you enjoy them!

Intro video

[Episode 9 Playlist](http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv_rvGfxbXKMZdnPuesP0bKSANB-RqN9J)

The roar of mixed voices bounce around the limousine. The large group of friends all divided into their own individual conversations. Santana sits back in the leather seat, staring at all the commotion going on around her. Kurt is talking with Blaine while sipping on a tall stemmed glass of complimentary champagne. Quinn, Puck, Artie, and Madison are huddled close together watching a clip of something on Artie’s camera. While Rachel and Wesley are talking loudly about God knows what.

Brittany was right, Santana needed to get their attention and tell them the new plan. It wasn’t hard, and she wasn’t freaking out over their reaction. She is just, more or less, still in shock that Brittany is agreeing to this. They were about to be wives, in a matter of hours. Santana is so excited and happy that the feeling almost over shown the slight guilt she felt for not being patient enough to give Brittany the huge beautiful wedding she deserved. But the idea was already thrown out there, and Brittany already agreed, and there was no way in Hell she was taking it back now. She wanted to make Brittany her wife more than anything in the world, patience be damned.

Normally Santana would be wearing some sort of scowl or look of indifference as she gazed out to all her obnoxiously loud friends, but now she sits there with a wide grin, not caring if she looked like a fool or if her feelings were showing like a dress in a display window, I guess being happily in love would do that to a girl. “Ah-hem!” Santana clears her throat, gaining the attention of a few of her friends while the others continue talking. Rolling her eyes in frustration, Santana feels the anger and annoyance rise within her. That is until Brittany reaches over and threads her fingers with long tanned ones. Santana’s smile returns once again as she looks to her left and sparkling blue eyes shine back at her.

Turning her attention back to the chattery twenty something year old’s, she tries again, “Guys!” When she gets the same response as before she takes her right hand, since her left was still gripping on to its lifesaving device named Brittany, and makes a circle with her pointer finger and thumb. Placing the tip of her circle shaped fingers in between her plump lips, Santana tightens her lips and blows out created a loud ear piercing whistle.

Being in such a small space the sound of the whistle travels quickly causing all the other passengers to turn and look to where the noise came from. Looking towards the Latina in confusion, Santana speaks up once again. “Yeah, hi. Nice of you to finally pay attention.” A chorus of sighs is heard throughout the limo as the group relaxes and turns their full attention to their friend. “Now that I have you undivided attention…” She pauses to look over to Brittany, just as a last reassurance. After receiving a quick squeeze of her hand and a wide excited smile, Santana continues, a smile too, present on her lips. “We have a change of plans…” She trails off once more, eyes shifting between all the other bodies present. “Britt and I are getting married. And yes I know you guys already knew that, but I mean getting married as in now. Here in Vegas.”

Immediately a chorus of “What’s!” are being exclaimed and jaws dropping from the others who fill up the limo. Brittany smiles from ear to ear, shifting so she could wrap her arm around Santana’s waist to pull her even closer, if that was possible, as she begins to squirm excitedly in her seat. “Yes!” She confirms.

The group breaks down into loud whispers to the person next to them. Brittany and Santana sit back and watch the chaos play out before them as they hear things like about dresses, three tier cakes, and finding a room for a reception. Kurt’s face starts to turn a shade of red as he begins to panic. “Santana,” He begins but then looks to Brittany as well, “Brittany. How do you both expect us to throw together a wedding for you in Vegas! Other than maybe a conference room at the hotel, where are we going to be able to have the receptions. Oh! and what about the flowers and the decorations!” He stops taking deep breaths trying to regain control over his now labored breathing.

“Wait, wait, wait.” Santana shakes her hand in his direction, trying to stop him before he got way too far ahead of himself. She goes to open her mouth to explain to him when the soft at ease voice from her one true love rang through before she had the chance to find her voice. “We don’t care about all that stuff.” Brittany shrugs her shoulders simply. Turning and looking into soft mocha eyes staring back at her, Brittany feels herself melt and the words just tumble from her lips, “We just want to be married already. I don’t want to go one more day without Santana being my wife either. All that other stuff is for show for everyone else, in my opinion. All I need is Santana and I standing in front of all our friends, deciding to love each other for the rest of our lives.” Reluctantly tearing her eyes away from the Latina’s and looking to their friends who all are wearing soft smiles she finishes, “And since you all are here, we want to do it now!”

Santana instantly feels any guilt she had for being inpatient leave her mind. Brittany didn’t want any of that stuff either. But that’s how they are, how they always have been. It has always been about just them. Not about all the flashy stuff that came with being in a relationship, that was all hallmark stuff to them. Like Brittany said they just needed them, Brittany and Santana, standing there declaring their love for eternity to one another. And if it were up to Santana they would run to the chapel in their jeans and t-shirts they were wearing now and say _‘I do!’_.

The limousine comes to a stop outside the hotel entrance. The driver is quick to jump out of the drivers seat and open the back door allowing them all to file out of the overly cramped limo.

After the girls share the news with the passengers of the other limousine, Tina closes the door behind her, “Are you guys serious!? You’re really getting married?”

Brittany and Santana turn their heads, meeting each others eyes before turning back to their short Asian friend and nodding eagerly.

Rachel jumps up and down on the spot, clapping her hands as she exclaims, “Oh my God!”

“Then we have to go shopping. Right, now!” Kurt jumps in.

Santana scrunches her brows, her hands held stiff in mid-air, “Wait a second Ms. Peretti and Sadie Gay, didn’t we just say we didn’t need all that stuff?”

“Yes, Santana. And we heard you loud and clear; but you still have to have a wedding dress. Come on! Haven’t you always dreamed of what each of you would look like in a beautiful white gown…Or suit, whichever way you wanna go!” Kurt clasp his hands together tightly as his mind drifts off letting the fashionista within him take over.

A smile betrays her and stretches across her cheeks. She couldn’t lie and say she hadn’t dreamed of what Brittany would look like as she walked down that aisle. “Okay, fine. We can get dresses, or whatever it is that we want to wear.” She tries to force a hint of annoyance in her voice but even _Snix_ couldn’t appear in this moment, she was way too happy.

“Yes! Impromptu wedding dress shopping!” Kurt raises his hand to high five the closest person to him, which end up being Wesley who just smiled and high fived him anyways. “Come on you two, let’s go!” He pulls Brittany and Santana back to the limo doors by their elbows. All the girls following close behind, piling back into the limo without another word to the men who stood in the front of the hotel shell shocked.

Sam stuffs his hands in his front pockets looking from the back of the limo that had just pulled away back to the others standing next to him, “Um. What just happened?”

Mike lets out a laugh, realizing by now this group of friends was totally unpredictable and he just goes with the flow.

Wesley runs his hands through his hair as he asks, “So correct me if I’m wrong, but are we having a wedding?”

“Don’t you hear the bells?” Artie jokes causing the men to laugh.

Straightening out his uniform jacket, Puck says with a smug look, “Well, the pool plan is now long forgotten. Which is sad I was hoping to get Quinn into a bikini.” He pauses for a second thinking, before starting up again, “But, we do need to get into the party mood again, so who wants to hit the bar?” After receiving a mixture of head nods, shoulder shrugs and _“Sure’_ s” the boys make their way into the hotel and to the bar to grab some drinks.

As the determined group of friends walk through the parking garage and down to the sidewalk of Las Vegas North Premium outlet mall the sun started making its way through the clouds. It’s almost as if the days events were causing the weather to change to reflect the happiness and excitement flowing through them. The suns rays beam down on them and a cool breeze whips throughout the air. Shrugging off her jacket, Santana draps the leather material over her right arm as she laces her fingers with the pale ones hanging down by Brittany’s side, a smile evident on her lips. It wasn’t like she really cared much about the dresses shopping, at least not for herself anyways. Which is odd because she loves fashion and shopping just as much as the next girl. But she is excited at getting the chance to see what Brittany would pick out but even more so to see her beautiful blonde stand next to her and become her wife. To buzzed with excitement, Santana just goes with the flow, and by flow she meant the direction Kurt was practically dragging them, hoping it would hurry the processes along faster so she could hurry up and stand at that alter.

They make their way to the center of the outlet mall, surrounded by shops on each side of them, when Kurt comes to a complete stop causing the group to stop behind him. He turns around to face his friends as they all look to him for direction. This was sort of his area of expertise after all.

“Okay, we need to split up.” Kurt says as he runs the palms of his hands over his denim clad thighs.

Santana turns her head from the soft whispers Quinn was saying to her to look at the man standing before her. “Excuse me?” She questions confused.

“Yeah, Kurt is right.” Rachel pipes in. “We can split up and get you both dresses in a faster amount of time.”

“That and you guys can’t see each other’s dresses until you walk down the aisle.” Quinn agrees.

Shaking her head, Santana rolls her eyes before saying, “No, see we told you we don’t care about all that traditional crap. And I’m really only appeasing you here because I know Britt is going to look stunning in anything she picks out. But I really don’t see why we have to split up.”

“Come on, San.” Brittany whispers softly, leaning in to Santana. “It might be kind of fun.” She shrugs with a smile. “The suspense and anticipation.” Brittany unabashedly rakes her eyes over her soon-to-be wife’s figure, “I can’t wait to see what you pick out.”

Santana’s pointed look slows creeps into a loving smile as she looks to her fiance. Shaking her head with an airy chuckle she gives in. “Okay, fine.”

“Okay, good!” Kurt claps. “So Mercedes, Tina and Madison you go with Britt. Rachel, Quinn and I will help Santana.”

“Hold up, why do I have you three, can I switch?” The Latina complains.

Rolling her eyes Quinn grabs Santana’s arm, “Come on Santana, quit complaining.”

“Okay, lets hurry! We don’t have much time.” Kurt speaks as the group of friends divide into two groups on each side of the two brides to be. “How about we meet back here in an hour and a half top?”

 After receiving confirming nods from each of the girls, Brittany and Santana are pulled in opposite directions to being their speedy shop for a wedding outfit.

_(Kurt)…Let’s go girls, com’on…_

Santana leans up against a rack inside of Dolce and Gabbana as her mini fashion team runs around like they’ve had their heads cut off as they search through the racks of dresses.

_(Quinn)…I’m goin’ out tonight, I’m feelin’ alright. Gonna let it all hang out. Wanna make some noise, really raise my voice. Yeah, I wanna scream and shout…_

Blonde hair whips around as, Brittany runs through the store, eagerly helping her friends search through the racks of clothing inside of the BCBG Max Azria store. She picks up a poofy off white dress that has about ten layers of lace and holds it up for Madison, Tina and Mercedes to see. The three girls frantically shake their heads causing Brittany to throw her head back in laughter before putting the item back on the rack, and moving to the next.

_(Mercedes)…No inhibitions, make no conditions. Get a little outta line. I ain’t gonna act politically correct. I only wanna have a good time…_

With a pile of dresses draped over her forearm, Rachel grabs Santana’s hand and drags her towards the dressing rooms. Santana rolls her eyes and lets out an exaggerated huff as Rachel pushes her into the dressing room while shoving the pile of dresses into her hands. Santana hangs up the dresses on a hook inside the large dressing room, which she is sure is at least the size of her bedroom. Once the door is closed and locked behind her she can’t help the smile that spreads like a wildfire across her lips and bunching at her cheeks, as she looks at the beautiful dresses in front of her. As much as she wants to play it cool she can’t lie to herself; she’s really freaking excited.  

_(Santana)…The best thing about bein’ a woman is the prerogative to have a little fun and…Oh, oh, oh, go totally crazy, forget I’m a lady. Men’s shirts, short skirts. Oh, oh, oh, really go wild-yeah, doin’ it in style. Oh, oh, oh, get in the action, feel the attraction. Color my hair, do what I dare. Oh, oh, oh, I wanna be free-yeah, to feel the way I feel…_

Pulling down the first dress from it’s hanger after tossing her days attire into the corner of the dressing room, Santana pulls the dress over her head. She flips her long raven hair over her shoulder before skillfully zipping herself up.

She pushes the heavy black door to the dressing room open. Walking out into the center of the lounge right outside the line of dressing rooms to where he friends sit on a black leather sofa with silver legs. Making eye contact with her three judges Santana does a quick 360 before cocking her head to the side in question. Going down the line she cast her eyes to Rachel who looks her over quickly before frowning slightly and giving a slight shake of the head. She then looks over to Kurt and raises her eyebrows and receiving a fast head shake no. Lastly she looks over to Quinn, wanting her opinion. Quinn stands up and as she sucks her lips between her teeth and shakes her head she pushes Santana back towards the dressing room to try on a different dress.

_(Santana)…Man, I feel like a woman…_

Tina weaves her way through the store searching for Brittany. When she finds her she sees Brittany holding up a dress pressed to the front of her body and twirling in front of a full length mirror. Smiling and with a slight shake of her head she gently take Brittany’s hand and walks her to the dressing room.

As Brittany goes to walk into the dressing room. She’s buzzed with excitement to try on all the beautiful dresses the three girls are throwing at her that she practically running down the length of the hardwood flooring and throwing back a beige curtain. Quickly shedding her clothes she picks up a dress that Tina picked out for her and steps into it and zipping it at the side.

_(Tina)…The girls need a break tonight we’re gonna take the chance to get out on the town. We don’t need romance, we only wanna dance. We’re gonna let our hair hang down…_

Looking at herself in the mirror, Brittany’s nose scrunches up. It was safe to say her and Tina may have different sense of styles. Shrugging her shoulder, Brittany slips out from behind the curtain and walks down the long narrow wooden floor as if she were on a runway. Stopping at the end of the hallway and with a hand on her hip she poses.

_(Brittany)…The best thing about bein’ a woman is the prerogative to have a little fun and…Oh, oh, oh, go totally crazy, forget I’m a lady. Men’s shirts, short skirts. Oh, oh, oh, really go wild-yeah, doin’ it in style. Oh, oh, oh, get in the action, feel the attraction. Color my hair, do what I dare. Oh, oh, oh, I wanna be free-yeah, to feel the way I feel…_

Turning her back to her friends Brittany starts to walk away until she stops halfway down the aisle and looking over her shoulder with an exaggerated smile. Tina starts to clap excitedly, loving her dress of choice on the tall blonde. Brittany looks from Tina to the other two girls and sees Mercedes and Madison both shaking their heads with wide eyes. Tina turns to her right and sees the other girls reactions and her smile quickly tugs into a frown. Brittany’s stomach muscle clench as a laugh escapes from the back of her throat. The tall blonde then turns and skips back to her dressing room excited to try on the next dress.

_(Brittany)…Man, I feel like a woman…_

Shimmying out of a white flowing dress with an over abundance of ruffles, Santana quickly hangs it up and put it in the discard pile wondering how she even got talked into trying it on in the first place. She turns back to her left and sees the large pile of dresses Rachel, Kurt and Quinn, and who was she kidding, herself too, had piled up together for her to try on. Realizing they didn’t really have time for her to try on every single one of them, Santana starts to rifle through the huge stack. All the dresses where some shade of white and ranging from long ones to short ones and plain ones to sequenced ones. As she makes her way to the back of the pile one specific dress caught her eye. She eyes the dress for a moment longer before unhooking it from its hanger and pulling it over her head and letting the fabric fall down around her feet. Gathering her hair and flicking it to one side to rest on her left shoulder she looks down at her body before slowly bringing her eyes up to look into the mirror. “This is it.” She thinks to herself. She may have been skeptical about this whole dress shopping in the first place but one look at herself in this dress she can’t help but smile. She lets out a shaky breath before pulling the heavy dressing room door open again. She steps out into the large room where her friends are sitting and silently prays that they love it just as much as she did; and ever more so she wished Brittany would love it too.

Finally coming into view in front of Kurt, Rachel and Quinn, she’s never felt so vulnerable. She bit the inside of her cheek as she smoothed out the dress and looked intently to her friends. Rachel and Quinn were talking animatedly about something and when Quinn suddenly stopped talking, looking out in the distance, Rachel turned her head to see what was going on. Looking up and seeing Santana, Rachel could help but gasp and bring her hands up to cup her mouth. Santana smiled and asked the silent question they all knew she was standing out there waiting for. So they eagerly answered nodding their head yes while Kurt clapped and Quinn wiped a stray tear. Rachel stood up and made her way to Santana, mouthing _‘Beautiful’_ to her. Quinn comes up to stand behind Rachel and with smile they both grab Santana’s hand playfully making her dance in her dress as they sing. Santana lets go of all reluctantness and indulges in the fun shaking her butt as she laughs along with her friends.

_(Quinn and Rachel)…The best thing about bein’ a woman is the prerogative to have a little fun, fun. Oh, oh, oh, go totally crazy, forget I’m a lady. Men’s shirts, short skirts. Oh, oh, oh, really go wild-yeah, doin’ it in style_

Back in the dressing room Brittany reaches for the dress she had originally picked out and held up to her body before coming to the dressing room. It was a beautiful flowing gown with a pleated bottom and a heart shaped halter top. After shedding herself from the overly lacey dress she steps into the floor length dress and pulling it over top her bra clad breast. Looking in the mirror Brittany smiles a water smile. She did a 360 spin for herself in the mirror trying to see all sides of the dress.

Before she gets too emotional over the fact she couldn’t stop thinking about how she was only hours away from marrying her best friend and the girl of her dreams, Brittany pulls back the curtain and steps out of the dressing room. She stands still just right outside of the dressing room, not bothering to go anything further as she looks down the hallway to where Mercedes, Madison and Tina are standing. She opens her mouth to ask if they liked this dress but instead she feels a quiver in her smile and a tear roll down her cheek. Mercedes is the first one to move. Quickly making her way to Brittany and pulling her into a hug as Brittany shakes her head, crying and laughing at the same time. She looks over Mercedes shoulder to the other two girls. Madison lets out an excited squeal while holding her thumbs up. Tina’s eyes start to well up as well after seeing Brittany cry.

_(Madison and Tina) …Oh, oh, oh, get in the action, feel the attraction. Color my hair, do what I dare. Oh, oh, oh, I wanna be free-yeah, to feel the way I feel…_

Both groups stand in line to pay for their dresses after Santana and Brittany change back into their own clothes. They hand their dress over to the cashier along with their own credit cards, and by that they mean their fathers’ loaded visa’s they sent them to help pay for any wedding expenses after they found out their daughters were getting married. Each cashier gently stuffs their dresses in black protection back before zipping them clothed.

The two girls and their respective group of friends exit their store before heading back to their meeting place. As they get closer to the middle of the outside mall Brittany and Santana spot each other. With giddy smiles they both sing.

_(Brittany and Santana)… Man, I feel like a woman…_

The full group is reunited and they all make their way back to the limo. After laying their covered dressed down flat in the trunk of the limo they all climb back inside. As the driver presses on the gas moving forward and getting lost in the Vegas traffic, Kurt sings while wiggling in his seat.  

_(Kurt)…Oh yeah…I get totally crazy….Can you feel it? Come, come, come on baby…_

The limo pulls up to Caesar’s Palace entrance for the second time that day. The group climbs out of the limo and they step into the main lobby. Brittany has her dress hanging from two finger by the hook of its hangar while Santana’s is clutched in her left hand. The group struts into the center of the lobby as they all sing the last line of the song before bursting into laugh afterwards.

_(All)…I feel like a woman…_

After the group arrived back at the hotel they were once again talked into going their separate ways so they could get changed and ready to walk down the aisle. As they stand inside the spacious elevator with everyone comfortably packed inside Brittany leans into Santana’s personal space and whispers into her eyes, “So, what does your dress look like?” She asks eagerly.

Looking up to the taller woman out of the corner of her eyes, Santana lets out an airy chuckle, “Britt, I can’t tell you!” Turning her head to her right, and pausing to take in her soon-to-be wife’s beauty; almost forgetting what she is about to say. They may have been together for years, but Santana can never get over how beautiful Brittany is. Her sparkling sapphire eyes drew her in every time she gazed into them. Her long blonde locks sprawled across her shoulders and down her back as her bangs framed her angelic face. And Santana didn’t even want to get started on her fiance’s smile that never fails to make her weak in the knees when she receives one. The Latina is still trying to calm the ecstatic buzz that seems to be playing at the base of her heart at the thought that she is about to marry this amazing woman. She gets to be with Brittany for the rest of her life and she can’t think of anything else in this world, or out of it, that could make her happier than knowing that. Shaking her head to bring herself back from her thoughts, wondering how long she was lost in them, she says, “You’ll just have to wait and see me when you walk down the aisle. I’ll be the other girl wearing white.” She sends Brittany a wink as she smiles at the thought. Brittany’s pout quickly turns into a beaming smile and Santana can’t help but think that is precisely that smile she was just mentally talking to herself about.

The elevator ding just before the doors slide open revealing the floor where the two lovers will have to split ways. Mercedes, Tina and Madison step off first before turning back to the elevator waiting for Brittany to follow.

With a giddy smile still present on her lips, Brittany pulls Santana by the hem of her shirt, closing the distance and capturing her lips in a lingering kiss. She smiles into the kiss when she hear a soft hum fall from plump lips and tumble between her thin pink ones. She reluctantly pulls back and looks into warm brown eyes, biting her lips to keep her grin from spreading so wide her cheeks hurt. _What? She’s about to get married. Of course she’s giddy and can’t keep her hands off her fiance._ She forces herself to take a step back, sending Santana one last smile before saying, “I’ll see you at the altar.” Without waiting for the shorter woman’s reply she turns and steps out of the elevator. Stopping right outside the doors she turns around and looks to Santana. Time seems to stand still and if it wasn’t for the slowly closing doors Brittany was sure she could of stood there for hours, just admiring her fiance.

The doors close completely leaving Santana in the elevator with Kurt, Rachel and Quinn. Shaking her head once again but this time it was to try to get rid of the love struck face she is sure she has on. Trying to pull back on her mask of indifference but failing miserably. _Who cares if they teased her for how happy she looked right now. She should be happy she’s getting freaking married!_ And she is, wait no, happy isn’t even a good enough word to describe how she is feeling right now. Elated, maybe? Ecstatic, probably. Enamored, definitely.

Santana is once again brought out of her thoughts when the elevator doors start to slide open, this time ending on the top floor inside Kurt and Blaine’s penthouse suite. The four of them step out of the elevator and into the extravagant suite that Santana is sure is about three times the size of her and Brittany’s apartment back in L.A.

She looks around the room, trying to push down her jealousy that she didn’t get to stay in a room like it. Peering into the living room she spots Kurt standing in front of the T.V. that Blaine, Artie, Puck, Mike, Sam, Elliott and Wesley were probably just watching. Letting her feet carry her further into the room she spots Quinn and Rachel standing on the other side of the room. She wonders for a second how they all got in the living room without her noticing but quickly shakes it off as she listens to Kurt’s words.

“Sorry to interrupt this guys secret club meeting, but we need the room! So…Shoo!” Kurt claps his hands signalling for the lounging men to stand up. “Go to the bar or play some slots. I don’t care where you go. Just not here.” He says with a smile as if he wasn’t pretty much kicking them out.

Blaine stands up sending his fiance a slight pout causing Kurt’s eyes to soften. “Sorry, we just need to get the bride ready.” He points a thumb over his shoulder to where Santana stands with her arms crossed over her chest. “Don’t you see we have a lot to do?”

“Hey!” Santana scoffs, getting offended. She drops her arms to her sides, “I am naturally beautiful, thank you very much!”

Quickly turning his head to where the Latina stands, Kurt narrows his eyes at her accusingly, “Santana. You wear, fake eyelashes, hair extensions and had a boob job.”

If it were any other day she for sure would of jumped down Kurt’s throat with a long list of insults but this was her wedding day and she couldn’t find the energy to unleash _‘Snix’_ or tone down the high from the happiness that buzzed under her skin and throughout her body. Simply letting out a defeated sigh she just bends at the knees taking a seat in the chair that sits directly behind her.

Quinn and Rachel immediately pull out their bags off makeup causing Santana to arch a questioning brow, wondering when and where they got them anyways. Kurt turns back to his fiance who is still standing in the middle of the room along with the other guys.

“What are you all looking at? Go! We have a bride to get ready!”

Blaine smiles softly before saying, “Okay…Then I’ll see you later?”

Kurt simply nods in confirmation before adding, “Yeah. We will just meet you at the chapel’s entrance, in like what?” He looks over his shoulder for the girls opinions.

“Two hours?” Quinn states, trying to think how long it will take to get the two brides ready.

“Okay, two hours.” Kurt repeats to his fiance, “I will send you the address as soon as bride Lopez here tells me which chapel they decided on.”

Blaine and the other guys make their way out of the suite, disappearing when the elevator door closes sending them somewhere else and out of their hair. Quinn stands up from her crouched position in front of Santana and makes her way to stand behind her. Running her fingers through long dark hair she says, “I can do her hair.” Santana keeps quiet, not having a problem with the statement because years of being friends together, meant they have done each others hair numerous times, so she knows Quinn is capable.

“I can do her makeup!” Rachel says while rifling through the makeup bags. Kurt immediately shakes his head, “No! I’m in charge of the makeup!”

Santana looks at him stunned, “You don’t even use makeup! How are you supposed to know how to do it? Oh, wait, you are a fairy! Maybe you do use makeup.” She ends with a shrug.

Kurt ignores her comment and says, “Don’t ask, just trust me! I have this under control!”

“Just don’t make me look like a clown on my wedding day Lady-lips.” Santana says with an eye roll.

Kurt takes a deep breath before exhaling slowly, reminding himself he can’t kill the bride on her wedding day. He picks up a few items from the stash of makeup products in front of him and stars on Santana’s makeup.

Santana looks up into the large mirror sitting in front of her meeting Quinn and Rachel eyes as they stand behind her. As the three girls look at each other in the mirror Santana can’t hide the wide grin that pulls at her lips. This is going to be the best day of her life.

Brittany walks into her and Santana’s shared hotel room followed by Mercedes, Tina and Madison. She lays the long black bag that holds her dress across the foot of the queen sized bed. The blonde is full with so much excitement she couldn’t get herself to stay still. She frantically run across the room searching for her makeup bag, along with anything else she mind need.

With the help from her friends, Brittany ends up sitting in a chair that they pulled up from the cherry wooden desk in their room and placing it in front of the full length mirror on the back of the bathroom door. Brittany bounced around in her seat as Madison picked up loose strands of her hair and brushing through it while the flat iron heated up. Chuckling at the antsy tall blonde, Madison says, “Brittany in order to do your hair, I’m going to need you to sit still or else you’re going to get burned.”

Looking up and into the mirror in front of her at Madison, Brittany squints her eyes in confusion, “I don’t know what you’re saying I only speak English.”

Mercedes sits on the edge of the bed looking through the makeup bag Brittany had set there just moments before. She looks up at Brittany and smiles, “Brittany, she’s from London and technically she is speaking English.”

With her brows still scrunched Brittany straightens up in the seat with her hands clasped together in her lap, willing herself to stay still as Madison starts working on her hair.

Tina notices the blonde’s struggle to contain her excitement, as she is bobbing up and down her knees. So trying to make her go still, Tina squats down in front of her resting her hands on the blonde’s thighs to keep them still. Tina begins to talk to Brittany to keep her from bouncing out of her chair while Mercedes does her makeup and Madison does her hair.

The two girls slip off into meaningless conversation, just anything that came to mind to keep the blonde distracted. But of course Brittany’s thoughts come full circle and land back on the evenings events, to excited to stay off the topic for too long. “Do you really like the dress I got? Do you think San will like it?”

“Of course she will love it Britt you looked amazing in that dress.”  Tina responds.

A laugh is heard tumbling from Mercedes lips as she stands to the left of Brittany and applying a light layer of eye shadow to the now closed eyes. “Girl you could wear nothing down that aisle and Santana would be happy because it’s you.”

Mercedes is slightly taken aback when blue eyes pop open and eyebrows shoot up in question, “Should I actually do that?”

All three girls stop their movements and look to the blonde, immediately all yelling out a loud, “No!” at the same time.

Feeling the need to clarify, Mercedes tries again, “I just mean Santana will love it because it’s you and she loves you. Sometimes I wonder how Santana got someone so sweet as you Britt, but then I see you guys together and I see how much she loves you, and you love her.”

Hearing her best friends words, Brittany feels a wave of emotions wash over her and her eyes immediately start to fill up with unshed tears. “Oh no no don’t cry! Britt I’m almost finished with your makeup. What’s wrong?” Mercedes panics.

Brittany sniffles trying to blink away her tears but they betray her and spill over her bottom eyelids. “I’m sorry I don’t wanna ruin the work you just did on my makeup.” Her tears fall free from her eyes, down her face and into her lap. She swallows thickly before continuing, “But…I’m marrying my best friend today. I’m just really happy guys! I can’t believe this is actually happening, I think I’m kind of in shock, I just keep remembering everything we went through in High School and how just being together seemed so hard and now all that is passed and we’re getting married and I dreamt of this day for so long.” With her breathing starting to get heavy and more tears falling from her eyes, Madison and Mercedes stop what they are doing and kneel in front of Brittany along with Tina.

Madison is the first to speak as she leans to the side and whispers, “I think she’s having a panic attack.”

Tina runs over to the window gripping the base and pulling it open before walking back to Brittany. “Okay Britt, deep breaths. This is a good thing right, aren’t you happy?” The three girls look to the tall blonde who sucks in a deep breath and wipes her tears and with a smile she says, “Of course it is, this is the best day of my life.”

A black limousine pulls up out front of Graceland Wedding chapel. The driver makes his way on to the sidewalk and pops the door open. Rachel, Wesley, Kurt, Blaine, Quinn, Elliott, Puck and Santana slide out and step on to the sidewalk before making their way inside the chapel. As the group of friends go to head to the room where they ceremony will be held, Santana quickly finds her voice and asked for Kurt, Quinn and Rachel to stay back for a second. The three turn and look quizzically to Santana. “I just wanted to say thanks girls and Kurt. You know I’m not the kind of girl that shows her emotions and feelings,” She gives a simple shrug. “But I just want to thank you for everything. I couldn’t be here today, about to marry the love of my life, without your help. And the help of all the other people in that room.” She point aimlessly before uncharacteristically pull them into a hug.

By the time, the next limousine pulls up front of the chapel Santana and the gang are already somewhere inside the building. Pushing the door open Mercedes steps out first then followed by Madison, Artie, Sam, Tina and Mike. Mercedes steps up to the door after everyone else excited and lends a hand to the tall blonde bride. Brittany steps out of the limo and looks around with a smile. Her gaze travels from the sky, across the length of the building and back down to her friends before her. **“** Oh my god guys! Is this really happening right now? Is this what getting electrocuted feels like? I don’t think I’ve ever been so happy, my cheeks hurt from smiling so hard, it that normal? **”** The group all laugh. After reassuring Brittany that what she is feeling is completely normal for someone who was minutes away from getting married they all shuffle inside. Splitting up as everyone but Brittany makes their way to join the others in the rows of white chairs.

The soft music starts to play and Santana takes a deep breath, that’s her cue to start walking down the white tapestry silk runway that leads to the alter. She stands still in the doorway. She never heard the music because all she could hear was the blood rushing through her veins and the pounding of her heart. Soon enough there is a tap on her shoulder. Looking to her right she sees Quinn, “Are you ready?”

Santana lets out a shaky sigh, not because she’s nervous or having second thoughts, but because she is so happy that she has to fight back tears that threaten to spill down her cheeks over her plump lips and into the smiles she couldn’t wipe from her face. “Yes.” She breathes out a confident reply.

After receiving a quick nod of the head, Quinn sneaks back through the door and takes a seat next to Wesley in a white cloth covered chair. Santana takes her first step into the room where in mere minutes she will be married. With slow strides she makes her way to the end of the runway and she immediately sees all of her friends stand from their chairs.

She walks down the aisle along with the beat of the song. If it were under any other circumstance she would probably notice how beautiful the flowers and the white draping is. How stunning the crystal chandelier hanging above her is. And how the lighting in the room creates a soft humming glow. She probably would wonder how the chapel, that they called only and hour and a half before they showed up, knew to put out white lily flowers on top of the piers the ran the aisle. But she doesn’t pay attention to any of that because all she can focus on is her steps and making sure she doesn’t trip as she battles with her muscles that want to carry her to the altar faster while she tries to keep her steady pace. The sooner she got to the altar, the sooner she got to see Brittany and the sooner they would become wives. It was those thoughts though that kept her cheek bunching smile plastered on her face, unwilling to move for anything.

Santana is about halfway up the aisle when she starts to wonder what Brittany’s dress looks like. It’s no lie that she know how amazingly beautiful her, about-to-be _(in just a few minutes)_ -wife is. But her mind won’t stop racing with all the variations she pictures in her mind. Did Brittany pin her hair up or leave it down like she did? Did she straighten it or put it in large curls flowing down her back like Santana did? Was her dress a knee length that showed off her amazingly toned legs or was it long and slightly dragged on the ground by her feet like hers? These were the things that ran through her mind as her friends all stare at her with smile and some with a few tears, _Tina._

Santana opted to leave her hair down in large curls with one side pinned back with a diamond pearl hairpin. She was surprised when Kurt finished her makeup, for her kept it almost natural and just highlighted her natural features. She never knew she could look so beautiful without so much makeup but even she thought Kurt did a great job. As for her dress she had slipped into a form fitting white sequin and lace dress that flows down her body and surrounding her feet. The front was low cut and the back was an even lower cut showing of the apex of her breast and small of her back.

She lets out a breath of air she didn’t realize she was holding when she finally reaches the altar. She takes her spot on the left, which she was told by Brittany is always her spot because she’s left handed. The thought made her smile. Now standing at the top of the altar Santana turns and faces down the aisle eager to see Brittany. It’s probably less than two minutes between the time Santana stepped up of the altars platform till she sees Brittany round the corner and standing in the doorway entrance, but to Santana its the longest two minutes of her life.

The moment she sees Brittany standing in the doorway she immediately loses her breath. She looks stunning. Brittany is wearing a long flowing white dress, it is simple but elegantly beautiful. It has a sweetheart strapless top with small rhinestones and feathers embellishment hugging her at the top. From the bottom of her ribs it flows out and down to the floor trailing softly to the floor and just slightly dragging behind her. Her blonde hair is straight and lays down to the middle of her back. Her makeup is simple and natural looking with light pinks and browns and she has dangling diamond earrings in her ears.

Santana looks at the beautiful blonde who is now slowly making her way down the aisle, and she can’t tear her eyes away from her even if a meteor struck right next to her. She believes she is the luckiest woman in the world right now and she can’t believe that in that moment Brittany is mere minutes from becoming her wife, to have and to hold for the rest of their lives.

By the time Brittany makes it to the altar to stand beside Santana both women are wearing smiles so wide their eyes are almost forced shut by the bunching of their cheeks. After handing their small borrowed bouquet to Quinn and Mercedes, the two women reach out and lace their hands together. The music softly fades out as the chapels officiant steps up behind them.

After clearing his throat the officiant starts to speak, “Dear friends and family, we are gathered here today to witness and celebrate the union of Brittany Pierce and Santana Lopez in marriage. In the years they have been together, their love and understanding of each other has grown and matured, and now they have decided to live their lives together as wife and wife, you may now exchange your vows to each other”

Looking into mocha eyes, Brittany’s smile widens. There was a silent conversation being said between the two lovers. Brittany would say her vows first. They didn’t have to have a wedding rehearsal or an actual discussion of how this was going to work. They are so in sync that with one look into each others eyes, they already know what to do. Santana’s blush grows and Brittany opens her mouth to begin reciting her vows. Her unwritten vows that just start tumbling from perfect pink lips. “Santana, you are my best friend. My other half. You have always been there beside me, protecting me and loving me, even if you didn’t say it out loud. I promise to do the same for the rest of my life. I promise to love you and Snix through everything life has to throw at us.” She lets out an airy chuckle before continuing, “I promise to always be there for you when you need me and even when you don’t want me to, because honestly sometimes I feel like I can’t breathe unless I’m with you. You complete me in ways no one else ever has or could. You understand me and my unique unicorn genius mind. I promise to love you forever and to always stand by your side no matter what life has to throw out at us. So on this day, I give you my heart. My promise, that I will walk with you. Hand in hand, wherever our journey leads us. Living, learning, loving, together, forever and ever.”

By now Santana’s face is full of tears glossing up chocolate brown eyes and spill out onto caramel cheeks. Santana isn’t even aware of her own tears until a pale hand reaches forward, running the pad of her thumb over her cheek and wiping a few tears away. She lets out a water laugh at herself. Leave it to the one girl who attended McKinley that tried to be pretend to be the biggest badass to turn into a pile of mush and tears when the love of her life pours out her heart minutes before the legally become Wife’s by the state of Nevada. Santana wipes a few tears that are rolling down her cheeks and bites her lower lip to keep if from trembling. Taking a deep shaky breath before exhaling slowly as she tries to get her emotions in check now that it’s her turn to speak. “Britt, you know I’m not good with words, I never have been so I figured I keep with tradition and sing you my thoughts, feelings and vows.”

_(Santana)…How long will I love you? As long as stars are above you, and longer, if I can…_

Brown eye’s shine with more emotion than Brittany think she has ever seen. The corners of Santana’s lips tug up causing her cheeks to bunch up towards her ears, as she tries to not let the face splitting smile affect her singing.

_(Santana)…How long will I need you? As long as the seasons need to, follow their plan. How long will I be with you? As long as the sea is bound to, wash upon the sand…How long will I want you? As long as you want me to, and longer by far. How long will I hold you? As long as your father told you, as long as you can…_

Santana gives their intertwined hands a light squeeze, trying to keep herself from wrapping her arms around Brittany and pulling her into a tight embrace.

_(Santana)…How long will I give to you? As long as I live through you, however long you say. How long will I love you? As long as stars are above you, and longer, if I may…_

After letting out yet another emotional shaky breath, Santana chuckles lightly as she too reaches up to wipe a few stray tears from pink cheeks. “I love you Brittany. I need you like I need air to breath. It’s just plain fact. You have always been my rock, my kite string that keeps me grounded. You make me a better person even without trying. You always just wanted me to be myself and it turns out who I really am is someone who crumbles at your feet when you pout that lip and bat your eyelashes.” Santana laughs again. “You’re the one perfect thing In my life and as long as you are in it, my life is perfect. I promise to take care of you, protect you and love you forever and then I’ll get your genius mind to extend time past forever just so I can continue loving you.” Brittany bites her lip trying to contain her smile from growing any wider. “So today I vow myself to you forever. To love you forever and stand beside you and embrace whatever life throws at us, together, forever. And now I’m going to stop talking so we can get this going so I can hurry up and kiss you and make you my wife.”

A chorus of laughter is heard from their friends sitting in the seats placed out in front of them as well as from the officiant. “Okay we can continue then.” He says with amusement laced in his voice. Shifting his body to face towards Santana he begins, “Santana can I have you repeat after me?”

With a big smile Santana nods and then repeats the words the officiant is saying to her. “I take you to be my spouse, in equal love, as a mirror for my true self, as a partner on my path, to honor and to cherish, in sorrow and in joy, till death do us part. I promise to always be there for you, to shelter and hold your love as the most precious gift in my life. I will be truthful and honor you. I will care for you always and stand by you in times of sorrow and joy.”  

After shifting his body to the tall blonde the officiant then asks Brittany to do the same. “I take you to be my spouse, in equal love, as a mirror for my true self, as a partner on my path, to honor and to cherish, in sorrow and in joy, till death do us part. I promise to always be there for you, to shelter and hold your love as the most precious gift in my life. I will be truthful and honor you. I will care for you always and stand by you in times of sorrow and joy.” As Brittany begins to recite the word halfway through she stops. Santana quirks an eyebrow up at her.

“Wait, sorry. I forgot the last line?” Everyone chuckles, the officiant repeats the line again and Brittany correctly finishes her lines.

Turning back to Santana who’s still unable to wipe the adoring smile from her face as she looks up to Brittany, the officiant then asks, “Do you Santana Lopez take Brittany Pierce to be your partner in life and sharing your path; equal in love, a mirror for your true self, promising to honor and cherish, through good times and bad, until death do you part?” Santana sighs loudly like she’s been waiting her whole life to say these words. With an excited and loving smile and a shy laugh says, “Oh, God yes. I Do!”. Laughter erupts from their friends in the audience.

“Do you, Brittany Pierce take Santana Lopez to be your partner in life and sharing your path; equal in love, a mirror for your true self, promising to honor and cherish, through good times and bad, until death do you part?” With a happy smile and tears in her eyes Brittany squeezes Santana’s hand tightly while rocking on the heels of her shoes and saying loudly, “I do!”

After hearing the words _‘I do’_ blurt out from Brittany’s mouth, Santana looks to the officiant for their next task. Biting down hard on her bottom lip as she grounds her heels into the carpeting beneath her feet. She tries to keep herself from lunging forward and pulling the blonde closer and molding their lips together.  

“Do you have rings to exchange?” The officiants voice finally rings through. Santana cast her eyes down to the floor as she tucks her chin to her chest. After a moment of pause she looks back up, swallowing thickly, and reluctantly shaking her head no.

“Actually, I do.” Santana turns her head sharply at hearing Brittany’s voice. Smiling and taking a small step closer to the brunette, Brittany explains, I mean it’s not a wedding band. We can go pick those out together. But after you proposed I got you an engagement ring too, so I could put a ring on it too.” She lets out a laugh. “So I’d like to give it to you now.”

Santana didn’t know her heart could even feel this big, but now she is pretty sure it is going to burst from her chest. She wonders for a split second how her eyes haven’t run out of tears yet as her eye welled up once again, threatening to spill over. She looks up to the ceiling while blowing out a puff of air and swallowing the lump in her throat when Brittany slides the sparkling round three stone setting ring on the slender tan ring finger on her left hand. “I now pronounce you wife and wife, you may kiss the bride”. The officiants voice rings in her ears, The three words she has dreamed about hearing. ‘ _Wife and wife’_ It was like music to her ears. Santana leans over and kisses her wife for the first time. Pressing full plump lips to thin pink ones, capturing her bottom lip between hers. It was an innocent kiss but her stomach fluttered all the same as she hummed into her wife’s lips.

Their friends stand up quickly, clapping for the newlyweds while throwing white rose petals. Brittany and Santana reluctantly pull away when oxygen becomes necessary. Smiling at each other. Santana lets out a loud yelp when Brittany sets a hand on her hip and the other on the small of her back. Pulling her in before dipping her down and crush her lips back to the Latina’s, forgetting for a moment about the others in the room. Their lips finally part and piercing blue eyes meet soft brown’s as Brittany swollen lips turn up into a smile. “Now all my dreams have come true.”

Kurt sits by the kitchen table with his laptop in front of him. Blaine, who’s unusually quiet, is next to him, reading the newspaper while Kurt is deliberating whether or not to call his friend.

“Honey…Ummm…Do you think I should call her this early? She’s probably still asleep.” Kurt asks, still not sure of what to do.

“Ummm…What? Oh-Ummm sorry I was distracted reading this review of _‘Beautiful’_ the show but, ummm…I think it’s early for her but she must be awake right? I mean, isn’t she used to the early calls on set or something?” Blaine replies, looking up from the newspaper’s entertainment section where he was lost just a few seconds ago.

“Yeah you’re right…I’ll call her. Hope she picks up…” The blue-eyed man says as he quickly presses the call green button and Blaine resumes his reading.

Kurt waits for a couple of seconds until a familiar face, but not the one he was expecting, pops up on the other side of the screen.

“Wesley?” Kurt asks confused as to why this man is at his friend’s house so early.

_“Yeah…Last time I checked I was still me…How are you Kurt? How’s Blaine? Are you guys almost ready for the big event?”_

“Ummm…Sorry. Hi Wes…We’re good and ready I guess, thanks for asking and ummm I don’t mean to be rude or anything, but what are you doing so early at Rachel’s house it’s like 5am there right?”

Wes laughs and with his peculiar and irresistible crooked smile, he replies, _“Well, she’s going to kill me for telling you this, I think she wanted to tell you, but anyways…It’s safe to say that I live here now…”_

“You what?” Kurt asks confused. Blaine who was partially listening to the conversation happening between his fiance and his friend’s boyfriend, looks up from the newspaper wearing a shocked expression. Kurt looks back and forth between the man seated in front of him and the man on the screen.

 _“I moved in when we got back from Vegas.”_ Wesley replies as a matter of explanation.

“Well those-those are some great news Wes! We are happy for you both…And ummmm is Rachel there?”

 _“No, she’s taking a shower, do you want to wait to talk to her or do you want me to tell her to call you back?”_ Wesley asks politely.

Kurt shakes his head and replies, “No it’s fine! I just wanted to know if you guys have heard something from the newlyweds. We tried to call them but they aren’t picking their damn phones!”

_“No, we haven’t heard anything. We’re taking care of their cat so I guess that when they come back, they’ll let us know. And I hope they hurry because between you and I…I don’t like this cat. He’s always doing weird things…”_

Kurt laughs loudly and Blaine, who was still listening to the whole conversation starts to laugh too as he stands up and walks to the room. “Lord Tubbington is a character himself, but don’t worry, Britt can’t live without her cat, so they will pick him up as soon as they arrive”

_“I really hope so, it’s been two weeks! I don’t know if I’ll be able to survive any longer.”_

“We get you Wes, when the girls came back from Mercedes tour they stayed here so little L.T was part of this family too and yeah that cat does weird things….And I think they will be back soon. I mean Santana has to work right? I swear I still have no idea how she managed to get two more weeks off from her show…” Kurt says frowning. He has been thinking about that for a while now.

“Well she is the main character and the network seems to really love her so they were happy for her and Brittany and said they were willing to accommodate for her, but I believe once she’s back they are going to make her work like crazy…she’s going to regret taking 2 whole weeks plus the weekend at Vegas. She’s got lost time to make up for now.” Wesley adds laughing a little for the Latina’s impending fate and Kurt can’t help but laugh too.

In that moment, Rachel pipes in with a huge grin on her face and a towel on her head.

 _“Hi Kurt!”_ The brunette exclaims excited.

“Hi Rachel…Don’t be mad at Wesley, but he had to share the amazing news so I’m glad you guys had taken the next step.” He says smiling at the former Broadway star.

Rachel gives her boyfriend some killing eyes and focusing her attention back to her friend she replies, _“Well it was now or never right?”_ Kurt nods and Rachel quickly takes a seat next to Wesley. Kurt smiles at the couple because they look too cute together and Kurt couldn’t be happier for his high school friend. She was finally happy again and that made him feel happy too.

“I’m happy for you both Rachel. You two deserve to be happy”

 _“Thanks Kurt…and speaking about happiness, how’s everything going with the wedding? Are you guys ready? Where’s Blaine?”_ Rachel asks as she removes the towel from her head.

“Everything is perfect and yeah I think we’re ready…and Blaine…” Kurt replies looking back at the curtain sheets to try to spot his fiance. “He was here, but now he’s in our room I think…we have to go to school so maybe he’s getting ready”

_“Oh-Okay…Say hi for me and good luck at school. Are you still taking classes with my nemesis? Ms. Cassandra July?”_

“No I’m not, but Blaine is and as far as I heard she’s still the same annoying and super talented bitch.”

 _“I hate her, but I love her, if you know what I mean.”_ Rachel says between giggles.

“Yeah me too!” Kurt replies and Blaine emerges from the room carrying both Kurt’s and his bag. “Rache…I have to go, it’s getting late and we still have to walk to school…Talk to you later okay?”

_“Okay…bye guys!”_

“Bye Rachel!” Blaine yells from the other side of the room as Kurt waves goodbye and ends the call.

“I think the things between Rachel and Wes are getting pretty serious.” Blaine states while Kurt is standing up and walking to the door.

“I know…” Kurt replies in a whisper.

“Are you okay with that? I mean because of Finn?” Blaine asks carefully.

“Of course I’m fine with it, in fact I’m thrilled! And I bet Finn is somewhere smiling all goofy because Rachel is happy…”

“Yeah…I bet that too” Blaine says smiling as he quickly laces his fingers with his fiance’s, and hand in hand, the two boys walk out the small loft and head to school for another awesome day of their lives together.

Puck is at the military R-40 camp still trying to assimilate what just happened. He grabs his phone and tries to call Quinn but his girlfriend is not picking up her phone. _‘Please babe, pick up, pick up’,_ He thinks to himself as he dials the number again with no luck.

“Are you okay?” Shane, who was just entering the camp, asks.

“No man, I’m not…I want to talk to Quinn about the shocking news, but she is not picking up her phone.” Puck replies to his friend.

Shane smiles apologetically. “You want me to call Tina? Maybe they are together, you know now that our girls have become such good friends.”

“They were always friends though now they are more friends than before…” Puck explains. “But yeah, try calling her maybe with some luck they are actually together…”

“Okay…” Shane replies, taking out his phone and calling his girlfriend. The Asian girl answers in the second ring.

 _“Shanny! Baby! Why are you calling again? Did you forget to tell me something?”_ She asks all excited.

“No baby, I just wanted to know if Quinn was with you. Noah, my main man here, wants to talk to her but your friend is not picking up her phone…”

_“I’m outside her dorm actually…just give me 5 minutes and I’ll tell her to call Puck…And babe stop calling him Noah…It’s confusing! His name is Puck!”_

“Thanks babe and I can’t stop calling him like that because you’re wrong, his name is not Puck, his name is Noah…But anyways…Thanks babe. Talk to you tomorrow okay?…Love you!”

_“Love you too!”_

As soon as Shane ends the call Puck immediately asks, “Is she with her?”

“Yes and no…Tina’s outside her dorm so she said she’ll tell her to call you as soon as she’s with her”

“Oh-Okay…” Puck replies already tapping his left foot on the ground as he impatiently waits for Quinn to call.

“I think that ummmm…I’ll leave you alone for some time” Shane says as he notices his friend’s impatience. He knows him too well to know that sometimes is better to leave Puckerman alone.

“Yeah, thanks man!” Puck replies distracted while looking at his phone waiting for it to ring.

Twenty minutes later Puck’s phone starts to ring and he quickly slides his finger through the screen to answer the call.

“Babe! I’ve been trying to call you! Why weren’t you answering your phone? I have something important to share with you!” He immediately says not giving Quinn the chance to even say hello.

 _“Ummm…sorry I was taking a quick shower and I left my phone at the room…What is it?”_ The blonde asks intrigued.

“Are you ready?” Puck asks all excited.

 _“I guess, I am ready…What is it?”_ The blonde asks again.

“I got promoted to Technical Sergeant!”

_“What!?”_

“I got promoted to Technical Sergeant!” Puck replies excited.

 _“Oh my god! I can’t believe it! Really? Oh god those are great news! I’m so proud of you!”_ Quinn exclaims excited and Puck can hear Tina in the background asking what happened and Quinn repeating the news.

Puck smiles listening to his girlfriend gushing about the news, but the smile quickly dies in his lips. Not everything is good news. “Thanks babe, but this is not all great news…” He adds trying to hide his sad voice.

_“Why not? You got promoted to Technical Sergeant that’s wonderful! You’ll even have some more time to visit me!”_

“Yeah, but that also means that I’ll have to go to Afghanistan for a while…”

Quinn lets out a soft _‘Oh’_ as realization hits her. Certainly she haven’t thought about that and suddenly she was worried.

“But I’m going to be fine and I’ll be back in time for Kurt and Blaine’s wedding so we’ll see each other really soon…” Puck tries to reassure his girlfriend.

 _“Do you really have to go?”_ She asks unable to hide her concern.

“You know I have to, but I’ll be okay babe. You don’t have to worry, okay? I’ll just be there for one or two months and I won’t expose myself…I promise you that.”

 _“You promise…?”_ Quinn asks not so sure if she actually believes what her boyfriend is saying.

“I swear…” Puck replies with a hint of determination in his voice that leaves no space for doubts. He is dead serious.  

_“I love you Puck…”_

“I love you too Quinn” Puck replies with a sweet smile on his face and just when he’s about to speak again, Shane re-enters the room.

“Hey man, I’m sorry to interrupt but we have to go…Code 67-25”

Puck sighs and nods at his friend. “Babe…You heard Shane, I have to go, but I’ll call you soon okay? And don’t worry I’ll try to be in touch as much as possible…Don’t forget I love you okay?”

_“Never…I love you too”_

Puck takes a deep breath as he slowly ends the call. These next few months are going to be hard for them but worth it after all.

Sam stands inside WMHS auditorium rehearsing some numbers for the kids when the back doors of the auditorium suddenly swing open letting in a bright white light. Mercedes walks in causally smiling as she reaches the stage. Sam looks at her with surprise and a spark of excitement flashes through his green eyes.

“You came back!” He exclaims, his eyes shining like two bright stars.

“Of course I came back! What did you expect huh? To never see me again?” Mercedes asks faking an offended voice.

Sam quickly shakes his head alarmed. “No! Of course not! I just-I just thought that maybe what you had to do in San Diego was going to take you more time, but I’m glad to see you again so soon…”

“Just glad?” She asks with a coyly smile.

“No! I’m thrilled actually…” Sam replies smiling and showing that in fact he’s the happiest guy in the planet right now.

“I’m glad, I mean…I’m thrilled to hear that…” The soul diva says, as she slowly takes a seat next to him at the stage. Sam shifts a little uncomfortable, not by her presence, but by the million of things he wants to say and doesn’t know how or where to start.

“Ummm…Mercedes…I want to talk to you about-about what happened in Vegas…” He trails off.

“You want us to use the _‘what happens there stays there’_?” Mercedes asks with a hint of sadness in her voice. She thought that after all they had said to each other during that trip the things between them were okay now.

Sam shakes his head one more time. “No! I mean…You know how I feel about you, and that hasn’t changed, in fact it never changed. You’ve always been the one and you know it…but I think-I think I owe you an apology…”

Mercedes looks at him completely confused and Sam continues, “These past few months I’ve been treating you pretty bad and I’m sorry for that. I know that the whole situation was confusing for you, but I was confused too. I’m not trying to justify myself, I just want you to know why I did what I did…”

Mercedes moves closer to the blonde man and takes his hands in hers. “Okay, I’m listening.” She whispers softly.

Sam takes a deep breath and confesses, “Well, you know that our relationship has always ended the same way, with you leaving me. And I know it’s stupid, but I was afraid. I was afraid that you were going to leave me again. I tried to protect my heart and myself from you, but I couldn’t. All these months I’ve tried and failed to push you away and when I was telling you that I wasn’t sure if this is what I wanted anymore, I was partially lying…I didn’t want to keep suffering, but I do wanted to be with you. And the thing is that I was afraid, I’m still afraid, our lives are so different now, I already told you this, but we’ve changed and our paths are no longer in the same route. You’re a star, you can have anyone you want…and I’m just a teacher…I have nothing to offer, but myself…” He trails off.

Mercedes smiles and wipes the single tear that’s now rolling down Sam’s cheek. “I don’t care if you’re a teacher, a model, a singer, an actor, or a nobody. I love you and I will always love you. However, you’re right. We’ve changed and because we’ve changed I’m one hundred percent sure that this time we’re actually going to make it. I promise you that this time we won’t have the same ending. I think that after all we’ve been through, we both know our own limitations and that’s why I think we will be strong as a couple. You’re doing what you love, I’m doing what I love, we just need to share that with each other. It’s going to be hard, because yeah…I’ll have to be traveling between San Diego and here, but that’s something I’m willing to do for you and for us…”

“Really?” Sam asks as a soft smile spreads through his lips.

“Yes…” Mercedes whispers.

The two lovers stay silent for a couple of minutes. They don’t need to keep talking, they both know that things are about to change for the better between them.

After some time Mercedes looks up and looking straight into green eyes, she says, “So…?” Trying to question Sam about what’s going to happen with them.

“So? I love you, you love me…There’s nothing between us preventing us from being together right?”

Mercedes just nods and Sam continues, “And now as every couple, we have to honor the Glee duet tradition and then I’ll probably take you out on a date to this fancy new place out of town…” Sam says as the band starts to take their places behind them.

“Wait! Are you serious about _‘honoring the Glee duet tradition’_?” Mercedes asks playfully.

“I’m the Glee Club new coach! It’s my duty as Mr. Schue’s predecessor to keep up with all the traditions…Sorry babe, but I have to do it…Besides it’s hella romantic, right?” He says standing up and extending his hand to Mercedes, who with a smile stands up too and joins the blonde man in the middle of the stage.

Sam runs to the piano and starts to browse around the sheet music until he finds the one he was looking for. Taking the sheet, he runs back to Mercedes who looks at the song and smiles broadly. She knows the song back and forth and thinks it couldn’t be more perfect for them right now.

_(Sam)…They all say it, all the ones that made it. Once you find the one you claim it, but you’re gonna have to fight…_

Sam takes Mercedes’ hands and looking straight into chocolate brown eyes he starts to sing softly, giving the song the correct meaning through his voice. Mercedes smiles and caressing Sam’s cheek she sings too.

_(Mercedes)…When I think back the things that threw us off track. We handled like a heart attack ‘cause we didn’t see the light…_

They smile at each other and with tiny tears rolling down in both their faces, they join their voices again as they continue with the song.

_(Sam and Mercedes)…Oh, yeah, now…_

Millions of feelings are coming back and forth between them as they both sing to each other using the song as a way to reassure that this time things are going to actually work out between them.

_(Sam and Mercedes)…We both, know our own limitations, that’s why we’re strong. Now that we spent some time apart, we’re leading each other, out of the dark…’cause we both know…_

Sam releases Mercedes’ hands and walks to the middle of the stage, turning around to face the love of his life, who’s standing near the piano looking at the blonde man with heart eyes.

_(Sam)…From this moment forget what we were scared of. Say we’re never giving up…You say you’ll always…_

Mercedes walks the small distance between them while she joins her voice with his, they both meet again at the center of the stage with a single spotlight illuminating them from above. The silhouettes of the two lovers reflecting in the back of the stage.

_(Sam and Mercedes)…Try. To. Be. My…Helping hand. Try to be the one who understands. When things don’t go as you’ve planned, we’re still worth it all…_

The couple look at each other intently. Chocolate brown eyes to olive green eyes. It’s curious how with just a simple look, two souls can reconnect and become one, once more.

_(Sam and Mercedes)…Oh, yeah, now…_

Sam grabs Mercedes’ hands again and starts to slow dance around the stage with her as the music flows and their voices melt in one harmonize note.

_(Sam and Mercedes)…We both, know our own limitations, that’s why we’re strong. Now that we’ve spent some time apart, we’re leading each other, out of the dark…’cause we both know…_

Mercedes knowing that Sam can’t take his eyes off of her, walks to the edge of the stage and turns around inviting him to join her. The blonde man catches the message immediately and with a huge grin we walks back to reach his love.

_(Sam)…What we’re scared of….(Mercedes)…what we’re scared of…(Sam)…And what dreams are made of…(Mercedes)…what dreams are made of…(Sam and Mercedes)…They can take us further than what anybody can see, yeah…_

Sam keeps singing as Mercedes joins in some parts. Their voices have always mixed well together however today they sounded different, they sounded as one.

_(Sam and Mercedes)…We both, know our own limitations, and that’s why we’re strong. Now that we’ve spent some time apart, we’re leading each other, out of dark…We both (we both), know our (know our) own limitations, and that’s why we’re strong. Now that we’ve spent some time apart, we’re leading each other, out of the dark…’cause we both know…_

Mercedes wipes the few tears that start to run down her face. She’s overwhelmed by everything and Sam smiles at her with those lovely eyes that she loves so much as the last notes of the song start to play.

_(Sam and Mercedes)…We both know…_

As the song comes to an end, they both look at each other directly in the eye for a couple of seconds. Sam, unable to keep his feelings at bay anymore, closes the small distance between them and locks his lips with Mercedes’ as they slowly melt into a deep passionately kiss. After all this time, they are together again, as they should have always been.

Blaine is looking at the books stacked in the bookshelf placed at the back end of his therapist’s office. He’s trying not to get anxious with the overwhelming silence as Dr. Stevens seems to take some notes in his black leather weird looking notebook that he always has in front of him.

After several awkward minutes, the therapist looks up from his notebook and looking directly at Blaine, he states, “Well Blaine, I think we’re finally getting where we wanted to be. These past few months you have improved a lot and I think you should be proud of yourself. With this I’m not saying that you’re all fine and ready to go. Remember that we’re still fighting against this disease and it will be a struggle, some days worse than others as you have experienced, but I can say that if you continue with your sessions and follow all the doctor’s instructions to the letter then you’ll be just fine in time for your wedding…”

“I’m glad to hear that because the wedding is just around the corner and I want to be okay not just for me, but for Kurt too. This has been very hard for both of us, and I want to be fine to start this new life with him…”

“And you will be, don’t worry about that. You’re doing great so try not to worry that you’ll be just fine for the main event…” The doctor says giving Blaine a reassuring smile.

“Thanks and by the way, we’ll start sending the wedding invitations in a few days so expect yours…” Blaine adds with that peculiar charming smile that’s always plastered on his face no matter what.

“Well thanks for inviting me Blaine. It’s going to be an honor to be there with you both…And speaking about the wedding. Ummmm…Have you talked to your dad? What happened with what you told me in our last session?” The therapist asks taking a few more notes in his notebook.

Blaine shrugs and with a shy smile, he replies, “Well I talked to him and he said yes so I’ll have to work on that in the next following days…”

“Well…” The therapist adds looking up from his notebook. “If you want my professional opinion, I think it’s a great idea. Just talk about it with Kurt and if you two are willing to go through that then do it! I think that taking that step could help you to have some kind of peace with yourself, your family and your family to be too”

“Yes, thanks Dr. Stevens. I’ll talk about it with Kurt and see what he thinks, but I believe it’s a good idea…”

“Me too…Me too” Dr. Stevens replies while writing down some more notes.

 _‘Why does he always have to write something?’_ Blaine thinks to himself as the session continues for a few more minutes and then slowly comes to an end.

Will sits by the dinner table at home while Emma is making some dinner. The new Vocal Adrenaline coach is going over the set list for Sectionals, trying to think about the new choreography for the songs he has already picked out. Emma starts to go back and forth from the kitchen to the dining room to set the table and noticing the frown on her husband’s face she asks, “And…What did the kids say about the songs you chose?”

Will looks up from the sheet of paper he’s holding in his hands and smiles while watching his wife polish the side of the plates she was sitting on the table. “Well…They didn’t like them, as usual. It was a hard discussion, some of them just wanted something more pop-like but almost all of them wanted to do a _5 Seconds of Summer_ number, but what they don’t understand is that these songs are classics! The judges will know them because they all grew up on these songs!” Will states and taking a deep breath, he adds, “Besides, the theme for this sectionals is _‘Farewell’_ and I don’t think that a song describing how perfect a girl looks wearing American Apparel underwear is going to show that…”

Emma smiles sweetly at her husband and while rubbing his shoulders to help him relax a little, she says, “I know you have your reasons to believe otherwise but as your wife is my duty to tell you when I think you’re making a mistake. Maybe the judges grew up listening to those classic songs, but your students didn’t. Didn’t you learn anything from your time at McKinley? You know that they will perform better if they are doing music they feel passionate about and I’m sure you can find some songs in the top 40 that can relate to _‘Farewell’_ …Don’t make the same mistakes Will…”

Will’s eyebrows scrunch thinking over what his lovely wife is trying to tell him. “I don’t know…Do you really think I’m making a mistake? Do you think I should let them pick their own music? Think about it Emm…If I let them do that, they will just want to do their favorite songs and not stuff that actually shows their vocals the best which is what the judges are looking at in the competition, right?”

Emma nods slightly. “I think the judges are looking for good vocals, yes…But remember that they are also looking for passion. You always talk about that, don’t you think that the judges will be more pleased if they watch a group of kids enjoying what they are doing instead of a group of robots just standing on stage doing music they don’t even like? Music **_we_** felt passionate about years ago?” Will nods and Emma continues, “Didn’t you say this year’s theme was _‘Farewell’_?

Will just nods, suddenly everything his wife is saying is making sense.

“Well, then make them relate to that and look for songs together that reflect this year’s theme. I’m sure you know how to do it…But don’t do it on your own, do it as a team.” Emma adds winking and walking back to the kitchen to fetch their dinner.

Will sighs as he tries to process what his wife just told him. In that moment, their son, Daniel, cries and Will immediately yells, “I’ll take care of him”

Emma yells back a soft _‘Okay’_ as Will disappears through the hall and enters Daniel’s nursery room.

Will walks inside the nursery and quickly grabs Daniel from his cradle. The little boy starts to sob as he looks for some comfort in his father’s arms. “Don’t cry little one. I’m here…Were you having a bad dream?” Will asks to baby Daniel who has his eyes all redden of crying.

Will starts to rock him in his arms as the small human being just looks at his dad with his big green eyes who resemble her mother’s so much. After some minutes the crying ease and Will whispers “That’s better…” as a smile crosses on both son and dad. “Now I need to ask you something Danny, you know you’re my best coach right? So…Do you think I should let my students choose their own songs?”

Daniel looks at his father and smiles a tiny smile. Will smiles back and rocking his son in his arms, he whispers, “That’s what I thought too…Thanks man.”

Brittany strategically places open mouth kisses to the nap of Santana’s neck causing the Latina to laugh and fumble with the keys she’s currently holding; trying to open their apartment door. It’s been just a day over two weeks since they got married and things couldn’t be better. They are happy and in love and everything in their lives just seems to be falling into place. Santana shivers as she tries to ignore her wife’s roaming hands and the feeling of soft lips caressing her skin. Successfully getting the key turned the right way to slid into the door knobs lock, turning it and pushing the door open.

Placing one last kiss to caramel skin and giving Santana’s hip a light squeeze, Brittany reluctantly pulls away and bends down to grab the duffle bag by her feet. She walks forward into the open apartment smirking as she leaves a stunned brunette standing in the hallway.

Slowly exhaling, trying to put out the fire that was starting to burn under her skin. She could still feel the tingles lingering on her neck and hips from where pale hands once grazed her skin. Shaking her head, Santana bends down to grab the remaining bags on outside the apartment before stepping in and closing the door behind her.

“We need to pick up Lord Tubbington.” Brittany’s voice travels through the small apartment from the back bedroom.

Santana smiles as she carries the bags to meet her wife in their bedroom. Dropping the bag on the bed next to the other Brittany had already set there as well. “Yeah. We’ll go after we finish unpacking. Okay?”

Brittany nods with a smile. She watches her wife unzip the black bag before flipping it over and dumping the contents on top of the comforter. The two women share wanting looks. After two amazing weeks in St. Lucia spending every day laying on the beach wrapped up in each others arms and every morning and night memorizing every inch of their newly pronounced wives bodies. Taking each other to heights they didn’t even know existed before. It was hard being back in the real world and away from their isolated heaven where they couldn’t make love to each other every time the other smiled or flicked up their long lashes.

Picking up a white dress from the bed Santana begins to fold it. Focused on the fabric in from of her she missed the way her wife moved across the floor to stand behind her. It isn’t until she feels slender hands press against her back and sliding around her waist. Gripping at her hip bones and drawing soft circles there. A soft moan escapes from Santana’s lips. Her mind is telling her to slap Brittany’s hands away, through a t-shirt at her and tell her to start folding, knowing they had things to do to get back to regular life. But on the other side her body is already leaning into Brittany’s touch, her eyes already fluttering closed.

It’s the bedroom, Santana thinks to herself. It’s to small and it has a bed and Brittany is just too close and her hands are on her and she knows what those hands can do. Snapping out of her lustful haze Santana drops the shirt to the bed and takes a quick step out of Brittany’s embrace. “I-I um. I’m going to go check the mail.” Her chest violently rising and falling with each heavy breath before she turns and quickly exits the room, leaving a smirking Brittany behind. She knows exactly what she’s doing.

Santana runs out of the apartment and slowly makes her way to the mailbox at the end of the hall, taking her time trying to cool off. It’s not that she didn’t want to make love to Brittany. It was quite the opposite actually. Spending two weeks ravishing the beautiful blonde when ever she wanted was so amazing that Santana wondered how she was going to retrain her body to not ache for her wife while at work or at lunch with that dwarf, Berry. They needed to unpack their clothes, go over to Rachel’s to get Lord Tubbington and then stop by P.L.A.D. to make sure the place didn’t burn down while they were gone. All of these things definitely wouldn’t get done if Brittany keep looking at her with those dark blue lustful eyes.

She reaches inside the small metal mail box label with the number _‘305’_. Grabbing all the contents before slamming it back shut, locking it and removing her small silver key. Santana makes her way back down the long hallway and into the apartment while flipping through the pile of white envelopes and the stack of junk mail ads. She weaves her way further into the apartment without looking up from the mail in her hands. She steps one foot into the bedroom before immediately freezing.

Hearing the shuffling of feet Brittany looks up and towards the bedroom doorway when she sees Santana standing stock still as if lightning had just struck her. “What is it? What happened?”

Santana hands are shaking as she traces over the name on the envelope. “There’s a letter from my abuela.” She rasps out, barely above a whisper.

Brittany smiles widely, bouncing on the spot as she drops the part of jeans she was holding and glides over to Santana. “Finally! I thought that my wedding gift was never going to arrive!”

Brown eyes fill with unshed tears as Santana slowly tears her eyes away from the piece of mail and up to her wife. “Your wedding gift?” Her forehead wrinkles as her brows scrunch together in confusion.

Brittany’s eyes shine as the corner of her lips tug up even further. “Yes! I was just trying to help, you know. I knew you wouldn’t call her, but I believe she should know how happy you are. So I just called her instead.”

Santana’s face went from pale to red in a matter of seconds, “You called her! When? Wh-what? Why would you do that Brittany! I told you before I didn’t want to contact her!” Her arms flailed in anger as she shook her head feeling the heat rise with in her. And this time it was a whole other type of heat. It makes her wonder for a second how they went from giving each other bedroom eyes to the anger she felt rising in her chest.

The smile on Brittany’s face is immediately wiped away when she hears the anger laced in Santana’s words. This was not the reaction she was expecting to get. “San,” Brittany takes a step closer to her wife reaching out, searching for her hands, “I thought you’d be happy.” And she did. She thought that Santana would be happy that she took the step she was too scared to take but deep down really wanted. “I thought she should know that her nieta _Santanita_ got married and how happy you are. That you–”

“No Brittany! No! You don’t get to throw that in my face and call me that, like it’s suppose to still mean something. You of all people know what she meant to me and how she just shut me out and pretended like I didn’t exist! And I can’t believe you of all people, my **wife** , would go behind my back to the one person who hated. No, sorry. Hates, me because I fell in love with you! She’s probably writing me to tell me how much of an abomination our marriage is to her!” By now Santana had the white envelope clutched tightly in her hand, wrinkling the edges. Looking at Brittany with red rimmed eyes, Santana can’t tell if she wants to burst into tear or scream. So she does the later, “You went behind my back! This is a great way to start a marriage, Brittany.” With tears threatening to fall from angry mocha eyes she turns on the balls of her feet. Throwing back the front door before storming out and slamming it shut behind her.

Flinching slightly as the door slams shut, Brittany stands there staring at it willing for her wife to come back in so they could talk this out. But she knows Santana and she knows she needs to cool off. Knowing this didn’t stop the aching feeling she has that is seeping deep into her chest. It didn’t stop the lump in the back of her throat from forming or the big crocodile tears that were quickly filling up her eyes and tumbling over the edge like water rushing down the side of the grand canyon. Brittany breaths in a shaky breath as she closes her eyes tightly and lets the tears spill out as her bottom lip quivered and her body shook with each heavy, jagged breath.

_(Brittany)…I had big plans for our future, said I’d give you the whole world somehow. I tried makin’ good on that promise. Thought I’d be so much further by now. Never could build you a castle, even though you’re the queen of my heart. But I’ve had the best of intentions from the start…_

She wipes the tears from her cheeks only for them to immediately be replaced by new ones. Brittany hates fighting with Santana more than anything. And they don’t have fights very often, they are few and far between. Mainly because neither can stand to see the other upset whether that be angry or sad. Unfortunately fights where a part of any committed relationship and it would be unrealistic for her to think they never would have them. But she hates this feeling burning in her chest and tightening her throat.  She meant well when she did what she did. Only now does she see how her action hurt Santana so much.

_(Brittany)…Now some people think I’m a loser, cause I seldom get things right. But you make me feel like a winner, when you wrap me in your arms so tight. Please tell me you will remember, no matter how much I do wrong. That I had the best of intentions all along…_

Her voice quivers as she sings and her knees feel like they’re about to buckle from underneath her. Still standing in front of the door, the nose from it being slammed shut still ringing in her ears, she takes three steps back until the armrest of the sofa hits the back of her knees. She falls back on to the couch. Rubbing her bloodshot eyes as more tears overflow, running down her cheeks leaving a red stained path in their wake.

_(Brittany)…I gave you a ring, and I promised you things, I always thought we’d do. But my best-laid plans slipped right through my hands, to show my love for you. And if you could read my heart, then you’d know without exception It was all with the best of intentions…_

Brittany brings her knees up the her chest. Wrapping her arms around her legs and holding herself tightly, occasionally throwing glances to the front door just to see if the brunette would be coming back anytime soon.

_(Brittany)…I gave you a ring, and I promised you things, I always thought we’d do. But my best-laid plans slipped right through my hands, to show my love for you. And if you could read my heart, then you’d know without exception It was all with the best of intentions…_

Shifting in her seat on the couch, Brittany looks around for her best friend _(aside from Santana of course)_ , Lord Tubbington. But then remembers they still haven’t picked him back up from Rachel’s yet. Swallowing thickly she grabs a near by throw pillow. Laying it on top of her knees she lays her head down on-top of it, crying so hard was beginning to give her a migraine. With her head pressed to the plush on top of her knees she softly sings out the rest of the song, wishing Santana was there to listen.

_(Brittany)…So here I am asking forgiveness, and praying that you’ll understand. Don’t think I take you for granted, girl I know just how lucky I am. Though you deserve so much better, you won’t find devotion more true. ‘Cause I’ve had the best of intentions, girl I’ve had the best of intentions, Yes, I’ve had the best of intentions, loving you…_

Santana arrives at Rachel’s apartment after the little fight she had with Brittany and she’s clearly surprised when Rachel is not the one opening the door, but Wesley. Santana looks at the T.V actor with a confused expression and with her usual tact she asks, “Don’t you have a home Prince Charming?”

Rachel pops up from behind her boyfriend and says, “Yeah, this is his home now Santana…Many things have changed since you guys went on your honeymoon.” The small brunette explains.

Santana shrugs, not waiting for an invitation to come in, she makes her way inside the now shared apartment. Rachel and Wesley share confused looks. “Did you come to pick up the cat?” Rachel asks already grabbing the cat’s carrier.

Santana shakes her head and looking down she whispers, “No, I just had a fight with Britt…”

Rachel lets out a small _‘oh’_ as Santana looks at her friend with red rimmed eyes. Rachel takes a deep breath because she knows that whatever it is that happened, it can’t be good because Santana never cries. The Latina takes a deep breath and continues, “She did something she wasn’t supposed to do and I got mad. I yelled and stormed out. I started to walk and I don’t know why, but I ended up here.”

Stepping up and resting a hand on Santana’s shoulder, Wesley tries to calm her down. With a soft voice and a reassuring smile he says, “Don’t worry that much Santana, you know what they say; the first year of marriage is always the hardest one…”

Rachel looks at her boyfriend with a _‘please don’t help’_ kind of look and the blue-eyed man quickly shuts his mouth. Rachel, turning her attention back to her friend, says, “Do you want to sit and tell me what happened?”

Santana just nods and sits on the couch next to Rachel and quickly tells her what happened when they arrived to the apartment while Wes makes himself seem like he’s busy in the kitchen. After Santana ends telling her side of the story Rachel takes a deep breath before saying, “Well, she was just trying to help Santana. You can’t blame her for wanting to see you happy. We all know how hard it was for you when your abuela cut you out of her life. Brittany knows your abuela’s forgiveness is something that’s important to you.”

“Yes, but the letter!” Santana says trying to explain her feelings.

“That’s good right? If you ask me, I think you should read it and then maybe talk to your wife who, I’m sure is feeling pretty sad right now.”

Santana shakes her head, looking down to her hands in her lap. “I don’t know if I can…”

“What?” Rachel asks confused.

“Read the damn letter Berry! I hate to admit this to you, but I’m afraid. What if she’s telling me I’m disgusting or that I’m going to Hell or something worse! I don’t know if I can handle that. I can’t handle her rejecting me twice. And being married to Brittany is the best thing in my life. I will not let her ruin this for me.”

Rachel smiles softly at her friend, “Don’t be afraid…Come on! You’re Santana Lopez, I mean Santana Pierce-Lopez. And that girl is not afraid of anything.”

Santana looks at Rachel with sad eyes. “I know I act tough and mean, but…Between you and me I’m terrified of a lot of things…”

Rachel lets out a small laugh. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to laugh, honestly. It’s just that, believe me or not that’s not a secret Santana. Ever since you were forced out of the closet in High School, we all kind of learned that you have a heart. You just like to hide it behind a couple layers of ice to make it seem like you can’t be hurt. But you know what? It’s okay to be scared sometimes.”

Santana rolls her eyes and Rachel chuckles. That’s the way they work as friends they pretend to mock each other to hide the fact that they care deeply for one another. “Well…Ummm…Wes and I have some errands to run, but you can stay here as long as you need. Just lock the door behind you when you’re gone and please…Take the cat with you. He’s driving us crazy.” She feigns a serious look while pointing to the large feline.

Santana laughs. “I was hoping you wanted to adopt him.”

“No, we don’t want pets now and less weird pets, but okay…We should go…Talk to your wife, okay? And I’ll see you later.”

Santana nods and before Rachel stands up she asks, “Why are you being so nice to me? If it was the other way around I’d totally be making fun of you.”

Rachel stands up and grabs a light blue jacket throwing it over her shoulders, before adding, “No you wouldn’t”

Smiling Rachel and Wes head out the door and Santana just sinks herself into the couch. She takes a deep breath and stays there seated on the couch for a couple minutes in silence just staring at the white envelope in her hands tracing the letters of her name that her abuela wrote on the front. She sighs heavily and after internally debating with herself for far to many minutes, she turns the envelope over in her hands and opens the letter. She starts reading it and a single tear rolls down her face.

Sam and Mercedes arrive to the Lima’s Lazeza Restaurant & Cafe. As soon as they make their way into the small, but fancy enough for a date restaurant, Mercedes immediately asks. “Are you sure this is okay? I mean, you know we can go to Breadstix…I kind of like it there…”

“Shhhh, It’s fine, I want us to have a real date so stop worrying about that. I’m a teacher, but I have some savings from my time as a model…” Sam immediately says as he motions to the host asking for a table for two.

A small man well groomed in fine clothes, escorts them to a cloth covered table in the middle of the restaurant. Sam and Mercedes look around before their eyes meet each others and a smile breaks out across their lips. The restaurant is small with twenty to thirty tables and is decorated with dark wooden furniture. The small glass chandeliers hanging up above give the space a sense of sophistication that not all the restaurants in the small town of Lima have.

“This is really nice Sam…Thank you…” Mercedes says, her eyes still wandering around the elegant setting.

“You’re welcome babe. I wish I could take you somewhere else, but there are not a lot of options around here. Maybe next week we can travel all the way down to Columbus and find a nice place there…”  Sam ducks his head shyly.

“This is fine Sam, actually this is perfect…Thank you…” Mercedes reaches across the table softly placing her hand on top of Sam’s to keep them from fidgeting nervously.

The waiter arrives to the table just in time to give them the menu. Reluctantly pulling their hands apart they both pick up their menus, scanning over it quickly before asking for the first thing they find there. Deciding to be spontaneous since it’s their first time there.

“Ummm I think I’ll have the _Linguini Scampi_ ” Mercedes says to the waiter.

“And…I want the _Blackened Shrimp And Gnocchi_ ” Sam adds closing his menu.

“Okay, and for the wine sir?” The waiter asks politely.

“Whatever the sommelier suggests…Thank you” Sam replies handing his menu back to the waiter without looking up; his eyes already focusing toward the beautiful woman in front of him.

“Right away sir…” The waiter says before walking away from the table to place their order.

Sam and Mercedes look at each other for a couple of seconds, letting their eyes take in the other’s features and Mercedes has to duck her head down to hide her blush. The way Sam has been looking at her all day make her feel uneasy in the best way possible.  

“So, how was San Diego?” Sam asks trying to make some small talk.

“Umm…I got a pretty good deal, they are going to record my second album but this time I’ll have more promotion and that’s good because hopefully I’ll be able to have a real tour, not in malls, but in actual show places. Maybe start with some small ones and then move to the bigger ones…I also will be able to travel I don’t need to be there to do it, so we’re going to be good with that…” Mercedes brings her hand up to the table. Picking up the small folded napkin she unfolds it and places it in her lap before looking back up to Sam as he speaks.

“Even if you weren’t able to come here I would be going there…”

“Really?” Mercedes smile grows, the corners of her lips tugging even higher.

Sam rolls his eyes playfully and grabbing Mercedes’ hand he says, “Yeah…I love you and for you I’ll travel the whole world if necessary…You know that…I really want to make this work this time, not matter what it takes.”

A single tear escapes from Mercedes’ eyes as she looks at the blonde man in front of her. “I love you too…” she sucks in her lips between her teeth before letting them go again as a happy sigh escapes from between them.

In that moment the waiter arrives and starts to pour the wine. Sam grabs his glass and lifting it, he says, “I want to propose a toast to us, to our amazing lives together and to love…”

Mercedes lifts her glass and clicking it with Sam’s she adds, “To us!”

Slowly creaking the door to her shred apartment open, Santana steps inside. She softly pushes the door closed making sure it doesn’t slam, something she didn’t bother worrying about when she left. Tentatively taking a step further into the apartment, Santana cranes her neck to see if she can spot her wife. She looks into the living room and finds Brittany sitting on the couch with her knees still bent and pulled up to her chest. Santana feels her heart clench as she takes in her wife’s appearance, noticing the red tear stains on her cheeks. She softly sets down Lord Tubbington’s carrier by the front door; leaving him there for the moment since making up with her wife is more important.

Catching the movement out of the corner of her eye, Brittany looks up and sees that Santana has returned. Letting out a relieved sigh, she immediately starts to apologize. “San, please believe me. I am so sor–”

Santana takes a step forward, landing in front of her. The Latina kneels down in front of her wife letting her hands rest on Brittany’s knees. “Don’t.” She stops the blonde. “Please, don’t apologize. I should be the one apologizing. I’m sorry Britt. I know you were just being your sweet thoughtful self and I overreacted. I was a down right bitch to you and you didn’t deserve that. It was just my insecurities getting the best of me. I never want to be like that towards you and I-I shouldn’t have left like that. I’m sorry for throwing out, _‘this isn’t a good way to start a marriage’_ because the way I acted isn’t a way to solve any disagreements in a marriage either. I love you, Britt.” Santana pauses, sending her wife a smile causing Brittany’s nose to twitch as she tries to suppress the smile tugging at her lips. Santana runs her hands along Brittany’s legs in a soothing pattern as she continues, “I know you meant well.” The brunette looks up to the ceiling as she speaks her thoughts, “It’s just that seeing her name on that letter freaked me out. I never thought she’d even acknowledge my existence again let alone write me a letter.” Santana lets her eyes come full circle landing back on the woman in front of her who listens intently with her lips pressed tightly together. “But, I really want to thank you for what you did.” Feeling the tingles in her calves from being bent down for too long, Santana stands up. Pressing a fleeting kiss to a pale cheek before taking the seat next to Brittany. She reaches over, using the pad of her thumb she smooths out the wrinkles between Brittany’s pinched brows as she further explains, “I know I wasn’t all that thrilled before but, you were right.” A laugh escapes from the back of her throat as she shakes her head, “You always seem to know what’s best for me.”

Brittany takes Santana’s hands into her own, running her thumb over caramel skin. She smiles lovingly at her wife, tears long forgotten. “I am an expert in the field of Santana Lopez.”

Letting out a chuckle, Santana drops her chin to her chest as she says, “That you are, Britt-Britt.”

“Soooo…Did you read the letter?” Brittany tentatively asks, still caressing soft skin but now traveling further up her arm lazily drawing heart shaped patterns.

Santana answers with a simple nod before fishing the envelope out of her leather jacket and handing it to the blonde.

Retracting her hands from the slow soft strokes her fingers were making on Santana’s forearm, Brittany takes the letter from Santana. Prying open the already torn open envelope she slips out the stationery paper. She slowly unfolds the letter trying not to roll her eyes at the virgin Mary image in the lower right hand corner. Letting her eyes skim the paper she reads the first line in her head before she feels a hand land on top of hers, successfully covering up the letter.

“Could, Um…can you read it out loud?”

Sending her wife a soft smile along with a consenting nod, Brittany then starts to read out loud. “Dear Santanita, It’s been a couple of years since I have seen or heard from you and I know that is my own fault. Everyday I go to church and pray. At first when I started going I thought I was going there to pray for you and this _‘life style’_ you’ve chosen to live, but in the end I ended up praying for myself. I prayed that I would be able to understand all of this. I still pray for that understanding everyday.” Brittany pauses, looking up to gauge her wife’s reaction. Even though Santana has already read the letter while at Rachel’s house her eyes still glossed over with unshed tears. Brittany shifts in her seat to scoot a little closer to the brunette. Tucking a stray strand that fell in front of brown eyes, behind her ear, before leaning in so their foreheads touch. She softly threads her fingers through raven locks, playing with the fine hairs on the back of Santana’s neck causing the Latina to shiver slightly before pressing a feather light kiss to her wife’s lips. “You okay for me to continue?” Brittany asks after pulling away just an inch to look into deep mocha eyes.

After receiving a shy nod from the brunette Brittany shifts her eyes back to the piece of paper. She clears her throat and continues to read it out loud. “I heard you got married. I don’t exactly understand it and I’m not going to pretend I do. But, I am truly happy you found someone to love. You should be really proud of that woman, she is really brave for contacting me the way she did. I have realized how much of your life I am missing out. My _nieta_ got married and I didn’t even know. You are growing up and changing and I am missing out on your life because of my own decisions and struggles. _Nieta_ , I don’t really understand and I’m not exactly ready to wrap my head around all of this. I’m an old lady. But there are not enough words in this world to begin to describe how truly sorry I am. I know it is no excuses and it took your wife contacting me to write this letter and I shouldn’t have let it come to that. So I will waste no more time asking for your forgiveness and to tell you that everyday I am trying to be okay with this, and that one day I will get there, if you can just have a little patience with your abuela. I need you to know that I never stopped loving you corazoncita. I recognize a lot of me in you, you are so brave and have so much strength and courage. When you came to me that day and told me your secret about loving Brittany, I shouldn’t have reacted that way, what I did it was inexcusable. I need you to know how proud of you I am for who you have become and what you have made of your life and that I hope to one day get to know this new Santana Pierce-Lopez that I have missed out on. Te amo demasiado, no lo olvides nunca. Atentamente tu abuela” _(I love you, don’t ever forget. Sincerely your grandmother.)_

After finishing the letter Brittany lets out a stunned sigh, “Wow….it worked.” She says as her eyes skim the letter over and over, from top to bottom, double checking she had read the words right.

“What did you say to her?” Santana questions with a bewilders shake of the head. “I mean she positively acknowledged our marriage. What did you do or say?” Her eyes are wide as she looks deeply into Brittany’s eyes as if she would see the answer within them.

Brittany’s lips poke out slightly as she shrugs her shoulders. “Nothing she didn’t already know.” She says vaguely, successfully keeping her actions a secret held between her and Santana’s abuela. She brings her hand up to cup Santana’s cheek, wiping a rebel tear that escaped from brown eyes with her thumb before saying, “I’m just glad it worked. I really think this was a huge step for her; for you both. I believe one day she will understand that our love is no different that her’s and your abuelo’s. And that you two will reconnect again.”

Kurt sits with his laptop resting on his lap as he’s watching some documentary about the oceans, when the email program suddenly chirps announcing he just received a new email. Looking down at to the bottom of his screen, Kurt frowns confused as the submitter reads _Santana Pierce-Lopez_.

Kurt smiles broadly because he has been waiting to hear something from his recently married friends. Turning off the T.V. he opens the email and reads to himself. _“Dear Gay-Lips and Hobbit number two, we’re back and happier than ever! Since we can’t go all the way back to New York to show you all the awesome stuff we did at Santa Lucia, we decided to send you these incredible and awesome pictures of our dreamy honeymoon. Let’s see if you can top this! (Yes, take this as a personal challenge, Lady-Hummel). Sincerely, Santana Pierce-Lopez. PS: Doesn’t my new name sound awesome?”_

Kurt rolls his eyes and starts to call his fiance, “Blaine! Blaine! Blaine! Come quickly, please!”

Blaine emerges from the room with a worried look and asks, “What happened? Are you alright?”

Kurt nods. “Yeah, sorry I just got excited. I’m fine…Santana just emailed me some pictures from their honeymoon! Look!” He points to the screen.

Blaine laughs a bit relieved and sits next to Kurt as the blue-eyed man opens the 20 or more attached pictures.

The first picture pops up on the screen and Blaine exclaims, “Oh my God! They look so happy!” and Kurt just nods smiling as he changes the picture.

“Aww look at that!” Kurt chirps “I’m so glad they got married” He adds while looking at the picture of the girls in Santa Lucia, sitting on a wide deck, sharing a wooden chaise lounge chair by a large sparkling blue water pool that looks as if it dropped off at its horizon. In the background the sandy beach and white-top waves from the ocean are seen directly below them.

The boys start going through the rest of the pictures adding causally commentaries between each other about all the pictures and highlighting how happy their friends look in all them.

One of the pictures displays a beautiful landscape of bright green rocky hill tops lined with colorful plants of all kinds, where the girls spent the day exploring their surroundings and Kurt looking at the picture adds playfully, “That place really looks amazing! Maybe we should move our honeymoon there!”

Blaine gives his soon-to-be-husband a hard look and Kurt laughing at his own joke, quickly says, “I was kidding honey…Of course we’re not changing our honeymoon plans. I love the place we chose. It’s perfect for us! And before I forget, please remind me that we need to buy a new camera. Santana challenged us to beat their honeymoon pictures and we are so going to try, okay?”

“Kurt…” Blaine adds knowing that this _‘my honeymoon was more awesome than yours’_ competition is going to end bad.

“Don’t Blaine! You know me, besides…She started it! I’m just going to play her game and before you start with your _‘it’s pointless, don’t do that Kurt’,_ let me tell you one thing…You better support me honey or you’re going to sleep in the bathtub during our first month as husbands…” Kurt adds playfully while patting Blaine’s chest.

Blaine laughs loudly and leans over to kiss his sometimes crazy and competitive finance. “Okay, if you put it like that then don’t worry we’ll buy a new camera and take all the pictures you want to beat the Pierce-Lopez clan because us, the Hummel-Anderson or Anderson-Hummel, still undefined, we never say no to a good challenge…”

“Exactly! I’m glad we’re on the same page” Kurt exclaims as he quickly kisses his fiance and changes the picture again. “And about our last names….Umm, are we really going to ask all our friends to vote?”

“Yes…After the disagreement we had about that–” Blaine is saying when Kurt abruptly interrupts.

“Disagreement? I think we had a very mature conversation where I stated why I thought Anderson-Hummel was a better option but you didn’t listen…” Kurt says pointedly with a hint of playfulness in his tone.

“I did listen to you, but I think Hummel-Anderson is a better option because it sounds like a single word and the other way around you have to make a pause between our names so…”

“But Anderson-Hummel sounds better because of the alphabetical order…” Kurt tries to counter argue.

Blaine rolls his eyes and closes the laptop, “See? We’re having this _‘mature conversation’_ again. Let’s leave this to fate okay? I just want to marry you and I don’t care if we change our last names completely…”

“Okay as you wish! I’ll make an online poll so all our friends and family can vote, but I can bet I’m going to win…” He sends Blaine a confident wink.

Blaine laughs as he rolls his eyes playfully. Sometimes his fiance was really competitive, but that was just one of the million things he loved about him.

After sharing happy tears and ecstatic and thankful kisses, Santana stands up from the couch offering a hand out to the blonde. Brittany laces their fingers together while swinging her legs off the couch and to the floor, standing up next to her wife. Santana tugs on their linked hands and softly sings as they make their way to their bedroom, and slip into their pajamas.    

 _(Santana)_ … _I’ve been awake for a while now. You’ve got me feelin’ like a child now ’cause every time I see your bubbly face I get the tingles and in a silly place…_

Puck takes a deep breath and while walking to the private jet that is going to take them to Afghanistan, he takes out his phone and starts to browse around the millions of pictures he has of his girlfriend. He stops at his favorite, the one he took of her when they were having dinner at some place at Connecticut in his last visit there. She looks so gorgeous and Puck can’t help but let out a small sigh because he hasn’t even left yet and he’s already missing her. Shane who’s walking next to him, notices the sad expression his friend is wearing and trying to cheer him up, he gives him a pat on his back. Puck looks up from his phone and smiles at his friend as they both board the jet and close the door behind them..

_(Brittany)…It starts in my toes and I crinkle my nose. Wherever it goes I always know that you make me smile. Please stay for a while now, just take your time wherever you go…_

Wesley and Rachel arrive to their apartment and Wesley immediately looks around trying to spot Lord Tubbington, but he’s not there anymore so the actor smiles relieved and Rachel laughs a little. The thing between the cat and his boyfriend was something she found hilarious. Wesley rolls his eyes when he notices that his girlfriend is actually making fun of him and takes a seat in front of the huge plasma inviting the brunette to join him. Rachel smiles sweetly and grabbing a blanket she lays next to his boyfriend as they both start to watch a rom-com.

_(Santana)…The rain is fallin’ on my window pane, but we’re hidin’ in a safer place. Under covers stayin’ dry and warm. You give me feelings that I adore…_

Sam and Mercedes, hand in hand, make their way out of the Lima’s Lazeza Restaurant & Cafe. In complete silence, the now couple, walks towards Sam’s car and just when Mercedes is about to climb into the small car, Sam stops her from the arm and making her turn around he gives her a passionate kiss that leaves them both breathless. Mercedes, after recovering her breath, smiles sweetly at her boyfriend and finally climbs into the car, still feeling dizzy due to the intense kiss.

_(Brittany)…They start in my toes make me crinkle my nose. Wherever it goes I always know that you make me smile. Please stay for a while now, just take your time wherever you go…_

Quinn and Tina take a seat at one of the tables at the Panera located near Quinn’s dorm. While talking animatedly, the two friends notice that their phones buzz at the same time. Looking at each other with confused expressions, both girls grab their respective phones and smile at the screen. Tina’s phone has a message waiting there from Shane, and Quinn’s one from Puck. The two former Glee Club members read their messages and share it immediately. Apparently their boyfriends’ jet was about to take off, and although that mean they wouldn’t seen them in 1 or 2 months it also mean that once they were back, they could be with them for at least 2 or 3 months so on the bright side, they couldn’t be happier.

_(Santana)…What am I gonna say when you make me feel this way? I just, mmmmmm…_

Kurt and Blaine are lying in bed looking at some pictures from the place where they are going for their honeymoon. Kurt is pointing all excited to the screen and his eyes seem to bright with anticipation for the upcoming trip they have ahead for them this year. Blaine who has his head resting on Kurt’s chest pretends to pay attention, but in reality he’s not looking at the screen, he’s looking at his fiance who is his favorite thing in the world to stare at. After some minutes Kurt realizes that Blaine is not paying attention so with a knowingly smile he pretends to point to the screen and then quickly kisses his distracted man taking him by surprise. Blaine laughs a little and deepens the kiss.

_(Santana and Brittany)…It starts in my toes makes me crinkle my nose. Wherever it goes I always know you make me smile. Please stay for a while now, just take your time wherever you go…_

Brittany and Santana are cuddling in their comfy queen size bed and smiling at each other as they keep singing. Their arms and legs are tangled together, both mindlessly playing with the other women’s wedding rings, smiling at the way they sparkle in the moons light. Santana sends her wife a wink before lifting her head from her pillow to place kisses in her hand, right where her wedding band is now securely placed. Brittany smiles broadly remembering the day the went out and bought the rings while they were in Saint Lucia for their honeymoon.

_(Santana)…I’ve been asleep for a while now you tucked me in just like a child now ‘cause every time you hold me in your arms. I’m comfortable enough to feel your warmth…_

Wesley turns off the T.V when he notices that his girlfriend is completely asleep. Trying not to wake her up, he slowly carries her to their bedroom and places her carefully in the bed. He takes a full whole minute just to admire her asleep, and giving her a kiss in the forehead, he slowly lays down next to her, turning off the lights.

Sam pulls over in front of Mercedes house and being a gentleman, he immediately hurries to open the door for her and helping her out of the car. Mercedes smiles sweetly at him and lacing her fingers with his, they both make their way to the doorstep. Sam smiles at his girlfriend and leaning over he kiss her again before the diva enters her home.

_(Santana and Brittany)…It starts in my soul and I lose all control. When you kiss my nose the feelin’ shows. ‘Cause you make me smile, baby just take your time now. Holdin’ me tight. Wherever, wherever, wherever you go…_

Kurt and Blaine keep kissing and the blue-eyed man, noticing that things are heating up between them, puts the laptop aside and starts to unbutton his own pajama top. Blaine smiles knowingly and while kissing, more like devouring, his fiance, the shorter man stretches his arm trying to turn off the night lamp. Kurt laughs, because Blaine’s arms are too short to reach for the lamp, so cutting off the kiss, Kurt stretches himself and turns off the light as he locks his lips with Blaine’s.

_(Santana and Brittany)…Wherever, wherever, wherever you go…Mmmmm Wherever you go…I always know. ‘Cause you make me smile…Even just for awhile_

The song comes to an end and Santana shifts down in the bed to lay her head on Brittany’s chest. Brittany smiles down at the brunette, lacing an around around her waist and pulling her in tighter. Santana shifts her head up to gaze into Brittany’s eyes. Sparkling sapphire’s meet with warm browns and time seems to stand still. A smile spreads across Brittany’s face, biting her bottom lip in thought. She lets her eyes travel over the Latina’s features before finally breaking the comfortable silence.

“Goodnight… Wife!” She adds emphasis to the last word with a giddy smile .

Santana smiles a sweet smile, the ones she only gives to the woman in front of her. Stretching her neck to press a kiss to soft pink lips, she whispers, “Goodnight, wife!” as the girls turn off the light of their room.


	10. Playing Roles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on the Glee Fan Project…Brittany and Santana got married in Vegas and after two weeks of honeymoon the newlyweds came back home and the problems started. Oh-uh! Santana received a letter from her abuela and got mad at Brittany for going behind her back…Yikes! Brittany cried and sang, and later Santana apologized so now they are good and everything is back to normal between them…Awww. Sam and Mercedes finally had the talk and they are together again...Finally! Sam apologized for all the months he treated her bad and later the new couple honored the Glee couple’s tradition and sang a song together…Aren’t they cute? In other news, Wesley and Rachel are now living together and Kurt and Blaine are getting ready for their wedding…Did you guys receive the invitation yet?….And that’s what you missed on Glee!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s our tenth episode! We’re near the end of our season so all of this episodes will be about finishing stories, knotting lose ends and leading all our characters to their happy endings. This episode, as it titles says, will be about playing roles, which roles will they be playing? We can’t tell you just yet, but you can read it and find out now! There's a dance routine featured on this episode, so if you want to see the original video that our writers used as inspiration click on the 'dance routine' link that we will provide at the top of the episode next to the links to the intro video and the Episode 10 playlist of songs. Remember that we wrote the characters singing these songs with their own vocal arrangements in mind that’s why some of these songs are covers and some are the originals. We hope you enjoy them!

Intro Video

[Episode 10 Playlist](http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv_rvGfxbXKO4Np158A_LjICCuko4IBBe)

[Dance Routine](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xaZxZqPprtw)

Kurt climbs into the driver seat of the small Volvo sedan they just rented at Port Columbus International Airport’s car rental. Blaine slips into the passenger seat and while the boys are adjusting their seat-belts Kurt, a bit worried, confesses, “God! I’m so not used to driving anymore…Are you sure you don’t want to drive instead?”

Blaine slowly shakes his head. “No, it’s fine, I don’t really feel like driving today…” The hazel-eyed man says while lowering his gaze and pretending to look at the phone in his lap.

Kurt smiles sympathetically to his fiance. He knows him well enough to know that it’s better to not continue inquiring about his mood. He already admitted to be worried, so there’s no point in continuing asking him the same thing. Kurt takes a deep breath and nervously, turns on the engine and starts to move forward, quickly getting lost in the streets of the small and peaceful town.

After ten straight minutes of silent driving, Blaine shifts a little and turns on the radio. Kurt smiles relieved because that’s a good sign, at least his fiance is in the mood for some music so not everything is that bad.

The radio station starts to play some old songs and suddenly the notes of _‘Perfect’_ by Pink start to echo through the small car. Kurt’s eyes open wide and he can’t help but exclaim all excited, “Oh my God, Blaine! Do you remember that song? It’s the song we sang to Santana! Awww, it’s one of our best duets!”

Blaine turns around and nods slightly, a soft smile playing around his lips. He remembers every single duet they have ever had. That’s for sure.

The two boys smile at each other as they remember those glorious days. Taking full advantage of this little moment of happiness, Kurt quickly glances to his right and winks at Blaine as he starts to sing along, hoping that his singing helps to improve the mood of the passenger seated next to him. But Blaine doesn’t even blink. He just sits there, now staring out at the passenger window completely lost in his own thoughts with his leg bouncing anxiously up and down and his hands shaking in the pockets of his jacket.

Kurt sighs and unable to keep ignoring the fact that his fiance is not as okay as he said he was when they first arrived, he asks, “Blaine, are you sure you’re okay?”

Blaine turns around and nods, looking into a pair of beautiful blue eyes that are looking at him with concern and love, too much love. “Yeah, sorry…Don’t worry, I’m just a bit nervous that’s all…”

“Do you really think this is a good idea for you? I mean, you know what I think and I’m sure this is good for both of us, and you also know that I’m with you in this. But you really seem nervous, anxious even…I don’t want this to trigger something else, so I’m going to ask again…Do you really want us to do this?”

“Yes…I am very nervous, but you know I need to do this Kurt. You know what Dr. Stevens said…This could be good for my recovery…”

Kurt stops the car at the red light and looking into his fiance’s eyes, he adds, “Okay, if you’re sure, then we’ll do it. I just want you to know that I’ll be here with you the whole time. No matter what happens tonight, I’ll be your support and if at anytime you want us to leave just say it and we’ll go, okay? You’re not alone in this Blaine…We’re in this together.” Kurt affirms.

Blaine nods and smiles a sincere smile to his fiance. He knows he’s not alone and he’s extremely grateful to have such a wonderful, friend, partner and soon-to-be-husband in his life. “Thank you, Kurt…I love you…” He whispers, not wanting to keep talking afraid that the tears start to roll down his face.

“And I love you too…” Kurt adds quickly squeezing Blaine’s hand in his and pushing the pedal to the ground as the traffic light turns green.

Blonde hair clings to Brittany’s neck and forehead; sticking to the beads of sweat rolling down alabaster skin as she rolls her body, popping and locking along with the beat reverberating from the large speakers in the right and left corners in the back of the room. She lets her feet glide across the floor, flipping her hair and rolling her hips, getting lost in the music.

There’s a knock at on the door, but Brittany, who is so in tune with the music feeling the beat vibrating through the floor and into her bones, doesn’t hear the sound. The wooden door creaks open and a brown haired woman peeks her head in.

The dancer, still lost in her impromptu routine, completely misses the pair of anxious eyes looking at her from the doorway. Her assistant waits for the right moment to interrupt her boss and after a few minutes of watching Brittany contort her body along to the beat of the music, she notices that Mrs. Pierce-Lopez is not going to finish any time soon; the shy woman clears her throat and speaks up.

“Mrs. Pierce-Lopez?” Brittany’s assistant’s voice is barely heard above the loud music echoing throughout the room.

“Yes? What’s up?” Brittany replies, looking at the woman in front of her while trying to catch her breath. She’s been married for almost two month now and she still can’t help the smile the spreads across her face when she hears her new last name. She even spent her first day back at work doodling on numerous post-its _‘Brittany Pierce-Lopez’_ then drawing a heart around it, peeling the post-it off and sticking it on her computer screen before doing the same thing to the next one; not ending until she could no longer see the light illuminating from her computer screen. She lets out an airy chuckle while shaking her head at herself and turning her attention back to her assistant.

Shifting from one foot to the other, the dark haired woman runs her fingers through her hair before saying, “I don’t mean to interrupt you. I just wanted to let you know that there is a gentleman in the lobby waiting for you.”

The tall blonde bends down to tighten the laces on her red and white high top Nike’s. Brittany’s head snaps up to her assistant and her brows furrow when she hears that someone is waiting for her. Racking her brain for a second trying to think who it could be, she stands up and brings the hem of her tank top up to wipe the sweat from her forehead before responding, “Okay, thanks, Emily.” She makes her way over to the bar attached to the mirrors in the front of the room. Grabbing the small blue towel she drapes it over her shoulder before following Emily out of the room and heading down the hallway.

Turning the corner and entering the lobby, Brittany spots Mike standing by the front desk leaning on the counter-top, with a gym back draped over his shoulder.

“Mike!”

Lifting his head from his phone that is resting in the palm of his hand, Mike makes eye contact with Brittany; dropping his bag as the blonde rungs toward him. He wraps his arms around her waist as she flings hers around his neck. He lifts her up causing her feet to leave the ground as he squeezes her tightly before setting her back down.

Brittany grins widely at her long time friend as he chuckles and says, “Hey Britt! How are you, how’s married life?”

Pale cheeks start to blush and Brittany pulls her chin to her chest trying to hide it. She scuffs the toe of her shoe against the lobby’s flooring while pulling her bottom lip through her teeth trying to contain the giddy smile that takes over her features whenever anyone mentions her and Santana being married. “I’m doing good and married life is great! Santana is great!”

Seeing the loving look gloss over Brittany’s eyes, Mike laughs once again. “I have a feeling you two will always be in the newlywed cupcake phase.”

The blonde shakes her head, looking up to the ceiling before her eyes land back on the tall Asian man. “So are you ready for today? I almost forgot what day it was and that you were coming today! But, I really appreciate you coming here and doing this. I mean I was already getting more people signing up for classes then I thought I would. But when I posted that the Mike Chang was going to be teaching an advanced master class here the classes filled up super quick! I have more people wanting to take classes here now than I do dance instructors. When I realized how well P.L.A.D. was hitting off I realized I can’t be the only teacher here so I hired a couple other instructors to take some of the classes.”

“Well, look at you Brittany, you’re really doing it. I had no doubts, you’re the best dancer I know, well besides myself of course.” Mike says with sarcasm laced in his voice.

Brittany rolls her eyes but nods in agreement, “Let me show you the dance room!”

It didn’t take long for Mike to get acquainted with Brittany’s favorite dance room (which is number five out of the eight labeled studio rooms). When they walked into the room Brittany announced it was her favorite room and he quickly understood why. “This looks just like the room we danced in at McKinley. Well, just bigger.”

 Brittany looks around the room and nods her head. It was the only room she had that was longer than it was wide and the only one that had the wooden bar attached to the mirrors in the front. It was also the only room she had that had mirrors on three out of the four walls, the others only having mirrors on the front wall. Room number five also had the original hardwood surfaced floors were as the other seven rooms flooring was replaced by Harlequin vinyl flooring.

Mike quickly got himself acquainted with the McKinley dance room look-a-like and showed Brittany the routine he is planning on teaching at the master class. Being the amazing dancer she is, Brittany had no trouble quickly picking up the routine and mastering it herself, before the rush of dancing students came filing into the room.

As the students take their place in the back of the room, Brittany and Mike stand in the front staring back at them with smiles. Mike turns his head and leans into Brittany’s space whispering a question to her that goes unheard by everyone else except the blonde. Brittany immediately smiles after hearing Mike’s words and eagerly nods her head before they both turn back to the class. Brittany motions to Mike, letting him know she is letting him take the lead here. He steps up and clears his throat, gaining the attention of the fifteen students.

“Hello everybody!” Mike smiles when he received a chorus of _‘Hello’_ ’s’ back before continuing, “My name is Mike Chang and I am lucky enough to be here at Pierce-Lopez Dance Academy to teach a class with the one and only Mrs. Brittany Pierce-Lopez herself!” Mike claps his hands, starting the applause and quickly being joined in by the rest of the dancers in the room. He motions for Brittany to step up beside her and she does as she gives a small wave to the others. “Now, I have been dancing with this one here for years and I gotta say you all are so lucky to get to learn from her.”

Brittany’s cheeks starts to turn a light shade of red as her long time friend continues to brag. “She is one of the best dancers I know and I actually tried to get her to come work with me as a choreographer for artist such as Lady Gaga and Jason Derulo, but she turned me down because being here and teaching you all was a bigger dream to her than running around the world dancing on tour. Anyways, I just wanted to say all that and also say that you guys made a great decision at coming here to start or continue your dancing experience. I have no doubt that with Mrs. Pierce-Lopez’s help you all could dance circles around me.” He chuckles once again before clapping his hands together. “With that being said who’s ready to dance!”

The class erupts into cheers full of _‘Yeah!’_ ’s. Mike looks to Brittany with a smirk before looking back to the group of dancers. “Alright, let’s get started! First we are going to show you the full routine all the way through before breaking it down step by step for you. This is just a little something we put together a few years back. So, Brittany if you want to assist me?”

Brittany nods in confirmation as she takes her place sitting on the floor. She sits facing the group of dancers with one leg bent at the knee while the other lays horizontal crossed in front of her with both hands reached out at her sides and her fingertips barely grazing the floor. Mike takes his spot sitting with his back against her’s mimicking Brittany’s same position. Brittany nods again, this time as a signal to her assistant to hit the play button to start the music.

A piano starts to play, the music filling the room. Brittany rolls her head counter-clockwise with the base of her head rolling along the back of Mike’s shoulders. She brings both hands up in the air in a soft fluid motion while turning her head to the left and looking down to the floor. The blonde brings her hands back in, softly caressing her own face before turning in her seated position to face Mike’s back. She runs her right hand down the length of his left arm, starting at the shoulder and when she gets to the tips of his fingers they both lift their arms back into the air, softly like a floating feather.

As Mike turns to face her, she turns away and stands up. Brittany points her toe out in front of her. Lifting her arms about her head she pivots in a 360 spin bringing her leg up and curving it behind her in the process. As the words to the song softly ring through the speakers, Brittany turns and sees Mike standing behind her with his hand held out for her. She runs the short distance to him, placing her right hand around Mike’s neck. He softly places a hand under her left arm and effortlessly lifts Brittany’s weight. The both twirl about the front of the room, Brittany’s legs bent at the knees looking as if she was floating.

_…D’accord, il existait d’autres facons de se quitter. Quelques éclats de verres auraient peut-être pu nous aider. Dans ce silence amer, j’ai décidé de pardonner. Les erreurs qu’on peut faire trop s’aimer…_

As Mike slowly lowers Brittany back to the floor, she gracefully steps down with pointed toes. Turning her back to him, he steps up behind her until his front is flush with her back as the sway together with the music. Brittany then turns and places her arms around his neck, one by one then letting them slide down his chest before pushing off and taking a step away from him. Mike reaches his arm out and softly runs his hand down Brittany’s back, trailing her spine. He reaches the bottom of her spine just as she bends at the knees, elegantly jumping into the air, turning mid jump as Mike wraps his arm around Brittany’s waist lifting her in the air until she lands in his arms with a leg on each side of his head, resting on his shoulders. With a perfect arch in her back she slowly leans backwards with her arms reached out above her head. With Mike holding her securely in his arms, Brittany leans back, parallel with the floor as Mike takes a few steps around the room spinning them.

_…D’accord la petite fille en moi souvent te reclamait. Presque comme une mere, tu me bordais, me protegeais. Je t’ai vole ce sang qu’on n’aurait pas due partager. A bout de mots, de reves je vais crier…_

As Brittany leans further backwards, Mike shifts his arms fluidly as she flips upside down before softly landing on her feet once again. She takes a step out away from Mike, but their hands still clutch together. Mike gently pulls Brittany back in while lifting their clasp hands up as Brittany spins under their arms, the two landing back to back. Mike throws his hands up as Brittany runs her hands down the length of his body behind her before clutching at his hips. Using the fabric of his pants as leverage Brittany grips it with her left hand while her right hand to pull her right leg straight up parallel with her body. With his hands still reaching above his head Mike reaches backwards slightly and grabs Brittany’s ankle while leaning forward causing Brittany to lay flat on his back with her right leg laying flat against her stomach, being held over his head. He continues to lean forward and Brittany flips over his head till they are brought face to face, her feet landing on his knees. They pause there for only a second and at the next beat of the song, Mike lifts Brittany up in the air balancing her one foot in the palm of his hand, while his other rests on her waist. She leans forward while lifting her back leg up in the air behind her, with pointed toes.

_…Je t’aime, je t’aime. Comme un fou comme un soldat. Comme une star de cinema. Je t’aime, je t’aime…Comme un loup, comme un roi. Comme un homme que je ne suis pas. Tu vois, je t’aime comme ca…_

As Mike walks around the room in small circling, balancing Brittany in his arms above his head, she leans down and grabs her own foot that’s balancing in Mike’s palm causing her to curve upside down and hugging her leg close to her body while her other leg is pointed out the opposite direction. Mike softly waves his left arm out, moving it along with the soft melody of the music while balancing Brittany with one arm above his head by the crook of her hip.

Mike bends his knees and his elbow before straightening them out again and throwing Brittany in the air. She does three full horizontal spins before landing safely in Mike’s arms. Shifting their stance, fluidly moving with the soft tone of the music, Brittany wraps her legs around Mike’s torso. As he wraps his arms around her waist she leans back with her arms out and the spin in an eight count. Mike then lifts Brittany at the waist, hoisting her up before bring her back slowly as her front slides down his passionately. As her feet touch the ground again she runs the back on her hands down his face.

_…D’accord, je t’ai confie tous mes sourires, tous mes secrets. Meme ceux, dont un frere est le gardien inavoue. Dans cette maison de pierre. Satan nous regardait danser. J’ai tant voulu la guerre. De corps qui se faisaient la paix…_

Catching her hand before it reaches his neck, Mike spins her around and effortlessly flips her upside down. Brittany holds onto Mike’s waist as Mike holds on to her left ankle. Mike leans his body backwards. His feet grounded to the floor and his torso floating parallel with the floor while holding on to Brittany’s right leg with her left pointed out in the opposite direction, both of their bodies being pushed against the laws of gravity. In a nimble movement Mike flips Brittany once again and as he lowers her to the floor, he slides underneath her laying on his back with her legs on either side of his shoulders. He grips onto her ankles as Brittany leans for, looking as if she might fall and face plant into the floor, but she gracefully stops a few inches before the floor, holding her stance for a moment before simply coming back up. Brittany takes a step out above Mike’s head and then bends backwards letting her arms fall to the floor, her back arching into a back bend before she effortlessly kicks her legs above her head and her body softly lands on top of Mike’s.

_…Je t’aime, je t’aime. Comme un fou comme un soldat. Comme une star de cinema. Je t’aime, je t’aime. Comme un loup, comme un roi. Comme un homme que je ne suis pas. Tu vois, je t’aime comme ca…_

Mike quickly stands up with Brittany’s knees in his arms and her arms around his neck. They spin throughout the room while Brittany reaches one arm out at a time in a fluid motion along with the music. Brittany then uses her knees in Mike’s hands as leverage to kick off as she pushes against her legs as well causing her to fly up in the air. Brittany curls her body and flips forward before landing back in Mike’s arms with one of his hands under her knees and the other laced behind her back. Mike then spins with Brittany in his arms. After a few spins Mike sets the blonde back down and Brittany starts to walk away from him once again. Mike quickly makes his way up behind her. He runs his hands down her sides slowly before gripping her supple waist and lifting her once more. Brittany sits on his shoulder, elegantly flowing her arms out at her sides. Mikes them shifts his hand under Brittany and throws her up. Brittany arches her back and flips again. As Brittany starts to come down from mid air, Mike reaches out for her and she lands in his arms that are laced around her waist and her feet pointed straight out on either side of his hips. Mike softly spins her in his arms before taking a knee to the ground and bowing into Brittany’s chest as she leans backwards with an arm thrown out above her head and the music softly dies out.

After Mike softly helps Brittany back to her feet the both walk to stand in the middle of the room, shoulder to shoulder. Taking each other’s hand in their own then playfully bowing in front of their small audience. Brittany looks up first when she hears a voice from one of the female dance students saying, _‘There’s no way we can do that.’_

Looking up Brittany has to suppress a giggle when she sees the wide eyes and slacked jaws from the students in front of her. Unable to hold back anymore Brittany looks to her left, her eyes meeting with Mike’s brown one, before the both burst out into laughter.

Trying to get her laughter under control Brittany brings her hand up to her mouth and fakes a cough, trying to wipe her smile away. “Don’t worry guys. We’re not going to make you do that complex of a routine.” She pauses before adding, “Yet.” She smirks.

Letting out a long sigh after finally calming his own laughter Mike pipes in, “She’s right. That’s not the routine we are going to teach you today. But we did want to show you what hard work, dedication and Pierce-Lopez Dance Studio could teach you.” Brittany and Mike share another smile as they watch all the students faces relax. “Now who’s ready to start dancing?” Mike asks again.

The class of fifteen yells out their _‘Yeah!’’s_ , now even more excited and determined than before. Mike and Brittany chance a glance at each other smirking, knowing their plan had worked at showing the class what Brittany’s studio could offer them

Mike and Brittany then demonstrate a shorter and simpler, yet equally beautiful, routine to the class before Mike starts to break it down step by step for the students. Brittany makes her way to the back of the room. She watches on as Mike shows the steps. Eventually she starts walking around the studio room, watching the students from different angles and giving pointers to the ones who need it.

Kurt pulls over the small Volvo in front of a familiar three story house. Taking a deep breath Kurt turns around to face his fiance who’s looking at the old house with concerned eyes. _‘This is it…’_ Both men think to themselves. They both are worried, one because of the upcoming awkward event they are about to endure, and the other one because the man he loves looks terrified to say the least.

Blaine takes a deep breath and starts to unbuckle his seat belt. Kurt does the same and turning to his left, he spots his father’s black SUV.

“That’s my dad’s car…” The blue eyed man says pointing to the car parked across the street.

“Okay, then let’s go…” Blaine replies faking a smile, but Kurt can read through those hazel eyes and knows that his fiance is partially dying inside and that if he could, he certainly would be staying inside the car until they had to go back to New York.

“Blaine…” Kurt exclaims grabbing his fiance’s arm.

“What?” Blaine asks turning around, his hand grabbed tightly to the still closed door of the car.

“I’m with you no matter what, okay?” Kurt says before climbing out of the car. Blaine nods and taking a deep, deep breath, he opens the passenger door and climbs out the Volvo.

Burt and Carole, who had spotted the guys since they arrived, climb out from their car and walk the street until the four of them are facing each other in front of Blaine’s parents’ house.

“Hey Kids! It’s been so long! How was your trip?” Burt asks while he slowly greats his son and soon-to-be son in law in a bone crushing Hummel-style hug.

“It was okay, dad. Not much to report actually…” Kurt says with a smile. “A bit of turbulence at first but nothing more. We got here pretty fast, since it’s not that far.” Kurt explains as Blaine just nods, he’s certainly not in his talkative self.

“I’m glad…By the way you two look great!” Burt adds smiling to the two men standing in front of him. They are very formally dressed with matching outfits, obviously both a very special selection of one Mr. Kurt Hummel.

Carole takes a step forward and hugs the boys too, giving them both a sweet kiss on the cheek before grabbing her husband’s arm again. “I’m glad to see you guys, it’s been so long…I’ve missed you both!”

“We missed you too, Carole!” Kurt exclaims smiling warmly at his stepmother.

The small family look at each other for a couple of seconds until Burt exclaims, “Well… And, what are we waiting for? Let’s do this! I’m dying to meet your parents Anderson!” He says excited and patting Blaine on the back.

Blaine smiles nervously and takes another deep breath as he walks to the house doorstep. It’s been quite some time since the last time he was there, almost two years to be precise. “Here we are…” He whispers more to himself and Kurt, who was by his side, quickly squeezes his hand tightly trying to give him some courage and silently telling him, _‘You can do this.’_

The hazel-eyed man sighs and while still holding his fiance’s hand for support, he knocks the door of his old house. After a couple of seconds that felt more like hours for Blaine, the door swings open and Pamela and Nicholas Anderson appear in the doorway. Pamela is wearing a cotton square knee length elegant blue dress, and Nicholas a wool melange charcoal bowery suit with a dark grey matching tie. Blaine smiles broadly at his parents and says, “Mama! Dad! Hi!”

Pamela immediately takes a step forward and hugs her son, giving him a sweet kiss on the forehead and whispering a soft _‘I’ve missed you baby…’_

Blaine smiles sweetly and quickly adds, “I missed you too mama…”

Nicholas just extends his hand and very harshly, he says, “Hello Blaine…”

Blaine shakes his father’s hand and clearing his throat he says, “Hi dad…Ummm…Let me introduce you guys to my soon-to-be family-in-laws. This lovely lady here is Carole Hummel, Burt’s wife and Kurt’s stepmother…” Carole smiles and Pamela quickly returns the gesture giving her guest a sweet welcoming smile. Blaine smiles too and then continues, “This man is Burt Hummel, Kurt’s dad and of course, this is Kurt, but you already knew him…” He shrugs; focusing his attention back to his in-law family, Blaine continues, “Burt, Carole, Bab–Kurt…Ummm these are my parents; Pamela and Nicholas Anderson.”

Nicholas and Pamela smile politely, and Burt and Carole, being their all friendly selves, take a step forward trying to hug everyone, but the Anderson’s are the not touchy feely type so they all limit to the very awkward and formal handshakes.

“Welcome to our house.” Pamela says showing her good manners, “But please…Make yourselves at home…” She says before walking the group into the living room.

Burt, Carole, Kurt and Blaine enter the house and Burt and Carole can’t help but notice that in fact, Blaine’s parents have a lot of money. The house is all finely decorated with paintings, sculptures and some ornaments that look way too expensive. Carole whispers a soft _‘Wow’_ as they pass next to a Chinese vase that looks like a piece from a museum.

The group reaches the living room and immediately, Kurt takes a seat next to Blaine on one of the couches, while Burt and Carole sit in the next one. Nicholas Anderson sits alone on the last couch and Pamela, looking at all her guests, quickly says, “Well, I’ll be back in a minute. I have to check that everything is ready for dinner. May I offer you something to drink while we wait?”

“We’re fine…Thank you” Burt immediately replies politely.

“Yes, we’re fine. But let me help you with the dinner…” Carole immediately says, standing up to make herself useful.

Pamela shakes her head and with a polite smile, she says, “Don’t worry my dear, it won’t take long. I’ll be back in a minute, please take a seat…”

Carole nods and takes her seat again. The group gathered at the living room stays silent for a few minutes just looking at each other, until Blaine, tired of the awkward atmosphere, finally speaks up. “And…Ummm, how have you been dad?”

“Fine Blaine, I mean I’ve been working a lot as usual, but we’re fine…” Nicholas replies, making himself more comfortable in the single couch and crossing his leg.

Blaine smiles uncomfortably because he was expecting to hear at least a politely and commonly used _‘And you son? How have you been?’_ But with Nicholas Anderson that was definitely not an option.

 _‘We’re fine too dad, thanks for asking.’_ Blaine thinks to himself and just when he is about to express out loud his discomfort, a familiar and very handsome face pokes through the living room door.

“Family! I’m home! Have you guys missed me?” Cooper Anderson exclaims, flashing the room with his overwhelming and charming presence.

“Coop!” Blaine exclaims excited as the rest of the people gathered in the living room, turn around to see the new guest.

Nicholas Anderson immediately stands up and walks the small distance between the couch and the living room threshold to hug his eldest son, making very clear to the rest of the people there that he did not do the same with his youngest son just a few minutes ago when they met by the door.

“Nice to see you Cooper!” Nicholas exclaims patting his son’s back with a lot of enthusiasm.

“Nice to see you too old man…” Cooper jokes.

Pamela emerges from the kitchen when she hears his son’s voice and quickly gives Cooper a kiss in the forehead just like she did with Blaine. “I’m glad you’re here Coop, how was your flight?” She asks all motherly and worried.

“So-so mama…It was delayed. I was supposed to arrived this morning, so technically I’m late, but at least I made it! Your favorite son in the world is here safe and sound!” Cooper quips with his particular white-toothed crooked smile.

Pamela chuckles and caressing her son’s cheek, she walks back to the kitchen. Cooper turns around and walks next to his brother, high fiving him in the process. “Hello Squirt! It’s been a while!” He exclaims hugging his little brother.

“Hi Coop!” Blaine replies smiling sweetly and hugging his brother back.

Cooper smiles and then turns his attention to Kurt. “Hello Kurt! I mean…Wow Kurt! I almost didn’t recognize you! You’re looking really, really great! New York definitely suits you! The last time I saw you, well…You were definitely not like this…” Cooper says pointing to Kurt’s full body and hugging him all friendly. “Now I see why this one can’t wait to marry you.” He jokes pointing to his little brother and making them both blush.

“Ummm, thanks Coop, you look great too!” Kurt replies smiling at his soon-to-be brother in law and still flushed by the sudden compliment.

Cooper flashes his crooked smile and looks at the unknown people inside his old house, “And…I assume these lovely people must be your parents, am I right Kurt?” He asks looking intently at Burt and Carole.

Kurt nods and Burt immediately introduces himself extending his hand towards the taller man. “I’m Burt Hummel, Kurt’s dad…And this is my wife and Kurt’s stepmother, Carol Hummel”

Cooper takes the hand Burt is extending, but instead of just shaking it, he pulls the old man into a big bone crushing hug, taking everybody by surprise. “Nice to meet you Burt…I’m Cooper Anderson, I can call you Burt, right?”

Burt smiles friendly and just nods. Then, Cooper takes Carole’s hand and using a fake, but quite frankly, very charming French accent, he says, “Enchante Mademoiselle…”

Carole smiles and blushes a little. Kurt and Blaine look at each other and laugh, because that’s Cooper’s effect on women. One look, one smile and they all melt.

After recovering the air missing in her lungs, Carole leans over and whispers into Blaine’s ear, “Oh my God Blaine, your brother is really handsome and charming…”

“Tell me about it…” Blaine murmurs, used to the fact that people always seem to find Cooper way too charming and ridiculously good looking.

In that moment Pamela emerges again from the kitchen and looking at everybody, she says, “The dinner is served, you all can come in. I hope you like what we prepared for this very special occasion”

Cooper smiles a big smile and grabbing his stomach, he says, “I’m glad to hear that! Because I’m starving!”

Blaine laughs and silently thanks the universe for his brother’s presence tonight. _‘At least this is not going to be that boring’_ He thinks to himself as he looks at his brother playful eyes.

Cooper puts an arm around his little brother and another one on Kurt, encouraging them both to walk with him to the dining table. Kurt and Blaine look at each other and smile at the antics of Blaine’s big brother.

“What!?” Cooper asks noticing the game of looks going on between the two lovebirds.

“Nothing Coop, we’re just really happy to see you…” Blaine says with a smile.

“Awww…I’m happy to see you too squirt, now let’s go eat whatever mama prepared for today, because I was not kidding…I’m really starving! I just had a small croissant on the airplane…That’s not proper food for a Hollywood star, right?”

“Right!” Both Kurt and Blaine reply as the three men walk together toward the dining table.

Wesley walks anxiously around his small, but comfy trailer. He’s trying to think of a way to talk to his girlfriend; not sure how to bring up a subject that recently has been bothering his mind. He’s terrified, he knows that the girl he loves is known for her extreme reactions, so thinking of ways to approach her without making her go mad, is always a challenge for the blue-eyed actor. _‘If only she was not such a drama-queen.’_ He thinks to himself as very slowly the door of his trailer swings open revealing a very smiley version of Rachel.

Wesley takes a deep breath and pretending to not have notice his girlfriend’s presence, he grabs his script and pretends to read his lines. The small brunette notices her boyfriend’s strange behavior and walking towards him, she asks, “Wes…Ummm is everything okay? You look worried…What were you doing before I came in?”

Wes turns around and looking into curious and concerned, chocolate brown eyes, he replies a simple, “Everything is fine and I was just rehearsing…”

“Are you sure?” Rachel inquiries, knowing those eyes way too much to know when they are lying or trying to hide something from her.

Wes sighs and knowing he can’t keep hiding things to her girlfriend, he speaks up. “Okay, you’re right, not everything is fine. Well, technically it is, but I don’t know how to tell you something that happened very, very recently…”

Rachel looks at him with a concerned expression. She’s not liking the path this conversations is taking. “Just say it! You’re freaking me out! What happened?”

Wes takes a deep breath and grabs Rachel’s hands. “I need you to do the opposite of what you just said and not freak out because it’s not a big deal.”

“Okay just spill it Grey!” Rachel exclaims a bit desperate. She hates when he plays around with what he wants to say.

“Okay…Ummm…I caught word that Chloe is gonna be guest starring in our show for a while and I just want you to know that what I had with her it’s over, completely over and has been over for a long time, and I promise you that you don’t have to worry about anything because I love you. I really, really love you. Just you!” Wes says, more like rambles.

Rachel frowns getting confused as to why her boyfriend is so worried. Looking into his beautiful blue eyes, she says. “Okay, first of all, calm down and speak slowly…I’m not getting a single word of what you’re saying and then tell me, whose Chloe?”

Wes takes a deep breath again and replies, “Sorry, ummm….Chloe-Chloe is my ex, we broke up a couple months before I met you. Well, technically we didn’t break up, she just dumped me because she was moving to London for a movie she was doing, but I promise you I’m over her one hundred percent!” He trails off.

“Exactly how many months before you met me?” Rachel asks, trying to get all the pieces together before jumping into her drama-queen self.

Wes stutters and mentally counting, he confesses, “Uhmm three? But please believe me when I’m saying that I’m over her because it’s the truth. I just love you okay?”

Rachel takes a deep breath and looking up at his boyfriend, she notices the sincerity and fear in his eyes like he’s really worried she might take these news badly. Taking a seat in the nearest couch, she pulls him with her and leaning over, she presses her lips against his. “Don’t worry, okay? I believe you, and I trust you. You don’t have to worry about her okay…And I love you too.”

“So…You’re not mad?” Wes asks, still not believing what he’s listening.

Rachel shakes her head. “No, I’m not mad…Why would I be? You said she’s in the past and I’m your present so relax.”

Wes exhales relieved and lets go a soft _‘Thanks’_

Rachel laughs and rolling her eyes playfully, she says, “You don’t need to thank me, I’m just playing my role…”

Wes’ eyebrows scrunch in confusion. Rachel, noticing her boyfriend’s expression quickly adds, “Dah! The role of the supportive girlfriend?”

Wesley laughs loudly and Rachel, patting on her boyfriend’s back, exclaims, “Yeah, yeah very funny…Now let’s go to work…We have 4 scenes to film today!”

“Okay, but before we go, can I do something else?” He asks flashing her a crooked smile.

“What?” Rachel asks out of curiosity.

“This…” Wesley murmurs as very slowly, he leans over and kisses the brunette deeply, almost taking her breath away.

 

As it was expected, dinner turns out to be just a silly display of good manners and uncomfortable silences. Forks hitting plates and occasional throat clearings are the only sounds that can be heard at the Anderson’s house dining table. No one there is daring to look up from their respective dinner plates and they all can feel the discomfort in the room.

Kurt takes a sip of his wine and briefly turns his head around to keep an eye on the man seated beside him. His fiance has a fully concentrated look on the plate in front of him and has barely touched his food. Cooper, who was looking at his brother too, shifts his eyes to Kurt and notices the little frown on his face. Sensing that the dinner is doomed to failure, he speaks up, “Okay! I can’t with this! Enough with the good manners etiquette! We’re here to spend some time as a family and this just looks like one of those boring business dinners and I cannot even say that this is a business dinner because if it was, then Dad would certainly be talking!”

Pamela gives his eldest son a hard look silently telling him, _‘Not now Cooper’_ but the commercial’s star is not willing to let this dinner to fail, so he exclaims, “What mama!? It’s true!”

Pamela lowers her gaze and Cooper, focusing his attention back to the guests, asks politely, “So…Burt, Kurt told us you are in congress? Is that true?”

Burt smiles and puts down his fork. “Yes, I’ve been there for a couple of years now. It’s been a fun experience so far. At first I wasn’t sure if I was doing the right thing, but now I think I am…”

“I’ve always been curious…Ummmm, do people in congress work everyday? I mean like the rest of the people 9 to 5, all week and all of that?” Cooper asks following up the conversation.

“Well technically yes and no, it depends on the position you’re at…In my case I always work, but occasionally I have long periods of vacations, like this week…”

“Well having long vacations is good right? It gives you time to travel and do other stuff, but tell me more about the congress, what do you do there? What are your duties?”

Burt takes a sip of his wine and looking at Cooper’s curious blue eyes, he replies, “Well the nature of the American political system is such that we could say that there is no formal set of required duties for congressmen, which means that we’re in a way free to interpret our duties as we see they fit. In general we represent the citizens of the district that elected us, in my case Lima and well since I became part of that, I’ve been trying to vote in favor of the arts, the LGTBQ rights and stuff that really matters and makes some change.”

“That’s amazing, right dad?” Cooper says, looking intently to his dad.

“Yeah, well done Burt…” Nicholas adds not really paying attention to the conversation, because if he was, he would have noticed that Burt mentioned something about the LGBTQ rights, and that’s certainly something Nicholas doesn’t feel comfortable about.

“Thanks Nicholas, and now that we’re talking, I would like to take this chance to thank you and your beautiful family for receiving us tonight. For us this dinner was very important, our kids are about to get married and it was about time that we get to know each other. After all we will become one family in a month so thank you again for this dinner…” Burt adds.

Nicholas just nods politely and Blaine immediately looks at him with hard eyes. He’s trying to tell him with one look, to at least say something, a simple _‘you’re welcome’_ or anything. But Nicholas just returns his attention back to his dinner and Blaine sighs.

“You’re welcome Burt!” Cooper chirps in, saving his father again. “I hope that my parents here aren’t making this too awkward for you guys!” He adds looking at his parents with hard eyes.

Burt laughs and continues, “Not at all Cooper! You know? The last time we had a family group dinner in a similar situation was at Finn and Rachel’s engagement dinner, so we have some experience with this _‘getting to know each other’_ awkward dinners and this is one has been really good so far…So thank you.”

With the mention of Finn’s name, Pamela softly reaches over the table and takes Carole’s hand in her own giving it a light squeeze and saying with a sympathetic voice, “I am terribly sorry for your family’s loss.”

Carole just gives a small smile and says, “Thank you, Pamela”

“Just Pam.” Pamela Anderson replies and Carole smiles at her friendly. Maybe with time these two women can actually become friends.

To prevent further awkward silences, Cooper starts to ask Kurt and Blaine about different topics, like Kurt’s new position at Vogue and the New York Fashion Week event. How are the guys doing at NYADA and how are their lives at New York City now that they are finally living together. During the whole conversation Nicholas Anderson shifts uncomfortably in his chair. The topics they are discussing are certainly not his cup of tea. _What’s wrong with this man?_

“All of that sounds amazing little brothers, I really hope you guys have recorded those plays I want to see you both at your shows. Kurt must have done an amazing job as Jack Kelly, but I bet the squirt here did a terrible Mr. Barker, right Kurt?” Cooper says mocking his little brother. As usual.

“No, on the contrary Coop, he did amazing! Our friend Artie recorded both plays so you’ll be able to watch them someday! You just need to go to New York and visit us! You don’t know our place yet, but it’s amazing. It’s not a studio in SoHo or anything, but we have a lot of space for you to stay.” Kurt squeezes Blaine’s hand.

“I sure will go and stay with you guys for a few days. I love New York and I have a lot of fellow celebrities living there so I can even introduce you to some of them. I just need to find some time, you know? I have like five new commercials and several auditions lined up…That’s why I couldn’t make it to Vegas…I’m temporarily stuck in L.A.” Cooper explains.

“That’s great, but you missed the best bachelor’s party ever…” Kurt adds taking a small sip from his wine and smiling at the memory of their Bachelor party at the Sin City.

“That’s what I heard…Is it true that the Latina girl and her blonde girlfriend got married there?” Cooper asks, and once again Nicholas shifts uncomfortably in his chair.

“Yes! How did you know that?” Blaine asks intrigued as to how his brother found out about that. I mean, it was not a secret, but he hadn’t mention anything to his brother about the impromptu wedding , at least not yet.

“Remember that I’m part of the Facebook group of all the guest stars that attended your high school Glee Club. Holly, the substitute teacher I think, wrote something about how she helped those girls discover they were in love or something like that and that now they were married…I’m glad for them though…Vegas is an amazing place to get married, like for real. You don’t have to wait, there are no medical tests, no nothing! You just go, get married and that’s it! Amazing right?” Cooper asks to the rest of the table. Burt and Carole just nod with small smiles on their faces, Pamela rolls her eyes playfully at his son’s antics and Nicholas doesn’t even look up from his almost finished dinner.

Now that the wedding topic was in discussion, Pamela takes the chance to ask his son more about his own wedding. “And speaking about weddings…Blaine how are things going on with yours? Have you two met with the priest for the ceremony yet? That’s very important you need to do that soon!”

Blaine shakes his head and replies softly, “Mama, remember that I told you that we’re not having a priest, it’ll just be an officiate…We’re not religious…” He explains again.

Nicholas mumbles under his breath, “Another reason why this isn’t a real wedding.”

Everyone at the table remain silent clearly uncomfortable with that last comment. The Anderson were a religious family, but it was also known that both his sons were not that religious, but apparently Nicholas decided to ignore that. Pamela and Cooper turn around to give their respective husband and father, some killing eyes because of the insensitive comment. The blue-eyed old man,  just looks up and exclaims, “What?” as if what he just said was nothing wrong.

Cooper shakes his head showing he’s not okay with what his dad just did, and Pamela looks back and forth between her two sons and her husband. Sometimes she doesn’t know which side to choose in the family.

Blaine looks at his dad expecting an apology, but when that doesn’t happen, he snaps his fork in the plate and stands up yelling. “Thanks for ruining dinner dad, as usual…I couldn’t have expected any less from you!” He says walking away and running upstairs to his childhood room.

All the guests freeze in their chairs and Kurt immediately stands up and excuses himself to follow his fiance upstairs.

Cooper, trying again to save the event, turns around and looks between his parents and Kurt’s family. “Well that was intense…Now…Who want’s dessert!?” He asks, winking and flashing his crooked smile.

Dark raven locks flow over tanned shoulders as Santana runs her fingers through her hair, letting it fall around her. She’s sitting on a green couch on set. The set it built to be her character Carmen’s living room. Shifting in her seat, Santana looks over to the director when she hears the buzz of the megaphone signalling he is about to speak.

“Okay, let’s run through that scene one more time. Remember, Santana, your character is a bit wild and quirky. I know you have it in you so, tap into that and give me your best shot. Let’s wrap this thing up!” His voice dies out as his finger lets off the button. Santana straightens her back and looks over to her co-star, putting on her metaphorical ‘ _Carmen mask_ ’ and then hears “Action!” ring throughout the room before she starts to run through her lines again.

_(Scene) “Ryan, you’ve been staring at me for the past five minutes. Please tell me you’re checking me out, otherwise I’m going to think you’re a serial killer…Which would explain a lot.” She mumbles the last part under her breath._

“Cut!” Santana hears the megaphone roar through the room once more, effectively falling out of character the moment she hears it. The director stands from his chair, making his way to the end of the set stage. “That was perfect Santana. No we are going to jump to scene 13 where Ryan tells Carmen that he’s in love with her. Carmen is surprised because she’s been crushing on him for years. The scene will end with Ryan and Carmen’s first kiss.”

Santana takes a deep breath, trying to tap into her character she’s been playing for the past couple months. The director yells, “Action” and Santana leaves her own person aside and slips into character.

She makes it through the whole scene flawlessly, until the end.

_(Scene) Carmen looks into brown eyes as the both slowly lean into each other. With their lips parted and only an inch of space between their lips._

Santana lets out a breath. Her brows scrunch together as she rakes her eyes over his defined jaw line and five o’clock shadow. She swallows the lump in her throat trying to push down her own feelings.

_(Scene) The rugged man inches himself closer to Carmen, their lips now only a hair apart. Carmen can feel his breath hit her lips as he snakes his left hand up to cup her cheek before slipping it down to the base of her neck and pulling her in the rest of the distant._

Santana feels rough hands playing with the fine hair on the back on her neck and the moment their lips graze her eyes fly wide open.

“Cut! Cut!” The director’s voice is bl-aired through the speakers on the megaphone.

Thankfully, Santana pulls back quickly and looks up to the director who motions a finger toward her silently telling her to walk over to him. She makes her way to his director’s chair, stopping just a foot away from him, looking at him expectantly.

“What’s going on Santana? Is there a problem? You look uncomfortable. Your character has been in love with this man for a long time. There needs to be passion in this kiss, like you’ve been waiting for it for ever.”

Quickly shaking her head, Santana tries to ease her director, “No, there’s no problem. Can I just take like ten minutes to regroup and then try it again?”

Sighing and rubbing two fingers at his temples before dropping them back into his lap, the director looks back to Santana. “Yeah, sure. But only ten minutes and I want you back on this set!”

After shaking her head, Santana makes her way out of the building. Stepping outside she takes a death breath of fresh air before grabbing her phone from between her bra and her left boob. Scrolling to her recent calls she presses the first one, calling the one person she knows can help her.

The phone rings about 4 times and right when she thinks it’s about to go to voice-mail a voice is heard through the phone “ _Hello?”_

Santana sighs relieved and visibly relaxes at the sound of her wife’s voice, “Hey Britt.”

“ _Hey babe, are you okay? I thought you were filming?”._

Deciding to take a short walk while she talks to her wife she starts to head down a short path to her trailer while speaking into the phone held close to her ear, “Yeah I’m fine, just taking a ten minute break before I have to go back. I’m just keep messing this scene up and I can’t figure out why because we all know I’m the queen at pretending to like people, but Britt I’m just having a hard time with this scene.”

 _“Well I don’t know how much help I can be, but you know I believe in you San. Tell me what the scene is about and maybe I can help you tap into your inner_ Carmen. _”_

Santana finally reaches her trailer and pulls open the door, stepping in. Plopping herself down on the small sofa, she then goes on to tell Brittany about the scene between her and Ryan and that she keeps struggling with the kiss at the end of it. As she’s venting out her frustration she hears muffled giggles from the other side of the line “What’s so funny Britt?”

Between small laughs Brittany responds, “ _Nothing! It’s just, this should be easy for you. You spent all of high school pretty much doing just this, pretending to like some guy.”_

Santana lays down on the sofa and puts her arm over her eyes. “I know, that’s why I don’t get why this is so hard!” Her voice croaks out, clearly getting frustrated with herself.

Brittany is heard again over the line this time her voice is soft and serious as she questions her wife, “ _San, you do know it’s just acting right? You’re not doing anything wrong by kissing him. You’re just playing a role.”_ The blonde pauses for a second, which Santana can only guess is to think for a moment before she hears her wife’s sweet angelic voice drift back through the line effectively keeping her calm. “ _How about this? See if it helps to pretend he’s me.”_

Santana can’t help but laugh as she thinks about her wife’s proposition before listing on some of the cons, “Brittany, he’s a scruffy guy. How do I pretend he’s you? When our lips touch all I can think about is his stubble scratching all over my face and his rough hands grabbing me and I immediately get disgusted.”

Letting out an airy chuckle the dancer tries again, _“Well, when he leans in to kiss you just close your eyes and picture me.”_  

The brunette sits up, knowing she only has a few more minutes left and needs to start making her way back to set. She closes her eyes for a split second as images of ocean blue eyes, alabaster skin adorned with freckles, blondes hair flowing down shoulders, toned abs and legs that go on for miles, run through her mind. Santana lets her eyes flutter back open as she rasps out, “I wish it were you.”

Brittany’s smile is practically heard through the phone. _“I know baby, just think the sooner you nail this scene the sooner you get to come home to some sweet lady kisses that are waiting here for you.”_

With a smirk Santana has a new-found determination to get this scene right and get home to her waiting wife. “Thanks Britt, listen I have to go now, but wish me luck?”

_“You don’t need it because you awesome, but good luck! I’ll see you soon, I love you.”_

A smile spreads across Santana’s face as she makes her way back to set, the phone still pressed to her ear and clutched in her left hand. “I love you to Britt, thanks for the help. Bye.” Finally making it to set she walks through the doors with her head held high while saying, “Okay, let’s get this over with.” Taking her place back on the green couch next to her co-star the director smiles at her determination and yells, “Action!”

When Cooper, Pamela, Nicholas, Burt and Carole finish their desserts. Cooper immediately says, “That was delicious mama! Thanks! And now…Why don’t we all go to the living room to continue talking? Dad, maybe you should show Burt your classic baseball cards collection. I bet he’s going to love that…and mama, why don’t you go to fetch some tea? You guys want some tea or coffee maybe?” He asks to Burt and Carole.

Carole smiles and nods, “Thanks Cooper, yes a cup of tea would be perfect.”

Pamela walks to the kitchen and Nicholas to his office to grab his classic baseball cards collection. Cooper smiles and being the perfect hosts he is, he says, “Please Burt…Carole, take a seat. I’ll go help my mama to bring the tea and some cookies, but I’ll be back in a minute, okay?”

Burt and Carole both nod taking a seat. As soon as Cooper disappears behind the door, Burt whispers to his wife’s ear. “I seriously don’t know how on earth Blaine came from this family! I mean Pamela is nice, she seems to love Blaine deeply though she’s a very quiet woman, Cooper is funny and has some charm, in fact he and Blaine are very much alike, but that Nicholas is just– Ahh! I’ve never met someone who treated his own son like that! I knew they were not in such good terms, but this is a new level of insanity! What he said at the table was completely out of place! I feel for Blaine, poor kid…Now I understand why he always looks for me when he needs some kind of advice…He’s lonely.”

Carole doesn’t reply and just smiles at her husband because in that moment Nicholas returns to the living room again. “Look Burt, this is the collection Cooper was talking about.” The dark-haired man exclaims handing Burt a leather black old box.

Burt grabs the box that Nicholas is handing him and looks at it closely. Inside there are at least 1000 Baseball cards. “Wow! This is a impressive collection, I bet it took you some time to get all of these cards…” Burt exclaims surprised and genuinely interested as he grabs some of the cards and look at them closely.

Nicholas nods. “Yeah, pretty much a lifetime…Do you like baseball or sports?”

Burt nods. “Yeah, I love sports…I even played football when I was young.”

Nicholas gets excited, apparently they have something else in common that is not gay sons who are about to get married. “You did?”

“Yeah, and I could have had future as a quarterback, but things changed and I found something better to do…” Burt trails off.

“May I ask, what was it?”

Burt smiles excited and with his peculiar big grin, he replies, “Well, obviously a woman!” Burt laughs and Nicholas laughs too. “Kurt’s mom appeared in my life and changed it completely and that’s when I found my true passion…Cars! Fixing cars is my passion”

“I love fixing cars too.” Nicholas exclaims excited.  “I used to do that with my father and I tried to do it with Cooper and Blaine, but it never worked. Cooper got bored immediately and Blaine was too _‘sensitive’_ for that.”

Burt gets uncomfortable and looking at his wife, he says, “Carole, honey…I think I left my pills at the car, you mind go and check?”

Carole gets the message immediately and instead of walking to the front door, she walks to the kitchen. Burt clears his throat and unable to keep his thoughts to himself he says, “Okay, Nicholas. I know that we barely know each other, but I think it’s my duty as Kurt’s father and future father in law of your son, to tell you a couple of things that I have in my mind…”

Nicholas frowns confused. “Okay…Be my guest.”

“I don’t usually do this, but let’s say that tonight I’ll play the role of defense attorney of your son and I want to clear up that I’m doing it because I love him like my own, and I feel very uncomfortable with the way you’ve been treating him tonight, and with that I assume his whole life too. I don’t know what’s wrong with you, but man! You can’t treat your son like that! It’s not right, he doesn’t deserve it. Blaine’s a great kid, and now that he’s becoming a man I think he should have your support. I don’t know why you two are so distant, but can I ask you something? Do you have something against him?”

Nicholas shakes his head and still pretty confused, he replies, “Listen Burt, I have nothing against my son and I know he’s a great kid, and all that. It’s just that this whole wedding, it’s just so bizarre to me. Isn’t it the same for you?”

Burt’s eyes open wide as he listens to what Nicholas is saying. “No, it’s not bizarre actually. We’re talking about two kids who love each other deeply…I don’t see the bizarre in that statement.”

Nicholas chuckles a bit. “Look Burt, you and I, we both grew in a very different times, we’re part of a very different generation. We learned different things and in our time, girls loved boys and boys loved girls. But now everything is upside down and we have boys loving boys and girls loving girls. I don’t know, but it’s confusing. Love can’t be like that, love isn’t supposed to be like that…It’s against the laws of God and nature.”

It is with that last part that Burt realizes that Blaine’s dad needs a serious intervention, so seizing the opportunity, he says, “My son loves your son, your son loves my son. I don’t really find that confusing at all. I know what you’ve been through and although I don’t share your opinion I do understand you…But let me ask you one thing first. Do you love Blaine?”

Nicholas looks at Burt and just nods. Burt smiles and continues, “So, do you really love him? I mean, deeply?”

Nicholas nods again and Burt, trying to make a point, then asks again, “May I ask you then, what are you?”

Nicholas looks at Burt completely confused, and unsure of what the congressman is trying to say, he replies. “Ummm…A man, I guess?”

Burt chuckles. “Technically speaking, yes you’re a man. But let’s use your own words. You’re a boy and correct me if I’m wrong, but you just said that you love your son deeply…Therefore if we analyze the situation, you’re a _boy_ loving a _boy_ …Is that confusing? Is that bizarre? Is that something that isn’t supposed to be like that? Something against the laws of God and nature?”

Nicholas loses the ability to even speak, Burt’s questions are echoing through his mind and he’s not liking the way this conversation is turning out to be.

“I know probably you’re thinking that the love you feel for your son is not the same kind of love, Blaine and Kurt feel for each other. And you’re right, but my point is that it’s in the nature itself that we find that love knows no gender. Boys can love boys and girls can love girls, love is love. I know it’s hard to assimilate it at first, but it’s not that hard. We’re both about the same age, so I understand that for us this new way of _‘accepting’_ love might be confusing, but let’s face it Nicholas. Homosexuality is nothing new, it has always existed. The only difference now is that before, people were more shy to admit it…But now the world is surrounded by people like your son and my son. Courageous boys and girls that despite receiving constant criticism and rejection from people like you, are willing to defend their love and fight for the one thing that we all came into this world to…”

“Which is?” Nicholas asks, a hint of irony in his voice.

“To be happy of course…And if you ask me, I am very proud of my son, because he’s going against all odds to be happy and that just proves that he is so much stronger than any men from our generation. So, yes…When you said that we were from a different era, you were right. We are part of a generation of cowards, a generation of people who loved to waste time trying to survive instead of living. Afraid to love and be loved in return…”

Nicholas tries to speak, but nothing is coming out from his mouth. Burt takes advantage of that and continues, “I know that I can’t ask you to accept and understand your son in one day, but because I already lost a son, I want to share something with you. When we learned that Finn was no longer with us I felt lost and perhaps the pain made me say things that if you ask me now I’d probably answer very differently, but there’s something I learned with time…The love of a son can’t be replaced. I’m not going to lie and say that we’re happy now, because we’re not, we will always miss him, but I can tell you that now we are in peace as a family, and you know why? Because we could see him being happy and living his life fully. Every smile, secret, fear, tear, doubt or story he shared with us, are now reminders of the time when he was happy and still with us. Those little moments are the flames that keep our love for him untouched. Ask yourself Nicholas…If tomorrow you found out Blaine’s not longer here, but that he left being the happiest man in the world because he felt what it was to love and be loved in return, how would that make you feel? Happy? Sad? Certainly not in peace, right?”

Nicholas doesn’t say a word and just lowers his head, ashamed.

“I’m going to take a leap of faith and try to guess that you would feel sad…And if I’m correct, then ask yourself again, why would you feel like that? And you’ll discover that the core of that sadness lies in the fact that until now you have been missing so many irreplaceable moments with your son…You weren’t there in his graduation, when they won nationals, when he was elected school president, or in the most important day of his life…When he asked my son to marry him.” Burt says matter of factly.

“Those moments won’t come back Nicholas…” Burt adds standing up and walking towards the door, but before leaving the room the congressman turns around one last time and looking at the now dreadful shadow of a man in front of him, he adds in a soft voice, “Don’t waste more time and be the father Blaine deserves. I already told you, he’s a great kid…Don’t you think he he deserves to have a great dad too…?” Burt says, leaving Nicholas trying to fight back the tears that now are threatening to roll down his face.

It’s late and after all the delays they had today on set, Rachel just wants to go home and curl up next to her boyfriend who left a few hours ago when his scenes were done. When the director yells _‘cut’_ , the former Broadway star walks to her chair and waits for the final instructions. The group of ladies from costume and makeup, walk around her and start touching up her character’s makeup as the brunette slowly closes her eyes, surely tired of all the day events.

She’s brought back to reality, when the voice of his director echos through the set. “Rachel, Can you please come over for a second?”

 The brunette opens her eyes and looking at all the ladies surrounding her, she stands up and walks to the director’s chair. The director immediately looks at his star and says all excited, “I want you to meet someone…Wait here please.” He says.

Rachel does what she was told to, and waits there as she watches the guys from the staff team preparing the last scenery change for the day.

After some minutes, the director returns with a hot-top-model like blonde actress by his side. Rachel looks at the girl stunned by her gorgeousness and the director immediately says, “Rachel this is Chloe Smith…Our new guest star.”

Rachel swallows slowly and looks at the Chloe girl from head to toe, feeling all her self-esteem dropping to the floor. _‘Oh God…’_ She thinks to herself as she analyzes Wesley’s ex.

Chloe being her natural bitch-diva-star self, immediately adds,  “And you are?” Using a dismissive tone in her voice.

The director, not catching the blonde’s voice tone, all proud and excited replies for the brunette, “She’s Rachel! The star of the show!”

Chloe looks closely at Rachel and with a wicked grin, she adds, “Oh! Then you must be Wes’ new one night stand trophy, right?”

Rachel gasps slightly, but controlling all her emotions, the brunette just smiles and with a very taunting voice, she says, “No, actually I’m not. I’m his girlfriend…I’m sorry if you never reached that category…”

Chloe just smiles trying to hide her discomfort and the director says, “Don’t fight girls…Rachel, let’s wrap the last scene, okay? it’s been a long day, I know you want to go home, but I really want to see how you two look together in one scene…you’ll have time to get to know each other later, but right now…let’s improvise, okay?”

Rachel nods being all professional, and the director, turning to face Chloe, asks, “Chloe are you ready?”

Chloe turns around diva-style and snaps, “I was born ready!” as she gives Rachel a challenging look.

Rachel rolls her eyes internally thinking, _‘Oh! it’s so on!’_ Because this girl can look like a freaking super model, but this is her show and so she’s the only star here.

When the two girls start to film the scene, Rachel notices that Chloe’s diva behavior is not just because of the show, but because of Wesley. The blonde walks over the girls from makeup and murmurs, “I think Wes must have some eyesight problems. I can’t believe he’s dating that thing!”

Rachel laughs to herself as a song starts to ring through her mind. If this girls wants to pick up a fight, she will get one. That’s for sure.

_(Rachel)…Give it your all girl, give it all ya got. You can take a chance and take your best shot. Say what you want girl, do whatcha do. He’s never gonna, gonna make it with you…_

The director yells _‘action’_ and Rachel, in her character, walks by and stumbles against Chloe’s character. The blonde turns around and all friendly smiles at the brunette. Rachel, still in character returns the smile and apologizes. Chloe’s character introduces to Rachel’s and the two girls walk together to the nearest table of the props Italian restaurant.

_(Rachel)…Your pullin’ petals of a flower tryin’ to getcha way. Keep pullin’ ’til it says what you want it to say. Girl you can pick a field full of daisies, but he’d still be my baby…_

When the director yells _‘cut’_ , immediately the friendly smile on the blonde’s face turns into a unpleasant frown. Rachel don’t wanting to show she cares, laughs wickedly at the childhood antics of the new guest star of _her_ show.

_(Rachel)…I know you can hardly wait ’til I’m away from him. Instinctively, I know what you’re thinkin’. You’ll be givin’ him an open invitation, but my baby won’t be taken in…_

The staff crew immediately places, props cups and plates in front of the two girls and the extras are placed in the other tables. In less than 2 minutes, this small set looked like a real Italian restaurant full with people enjoying a lovely dinner.

_(Rachel)…You can pout your cherry lips, try to tempt him with a sweet kiss (Sweet kiss). You can bat your pretty eyes, he ain’t got his hands tied…_

The director comes over and gives the two girls some instructions to improvise the chat between them during this dinner. According to the script, Chloe’s character becomes one of Rachel’s best friends until the blonde has to go to another country because she gets married. Rachel, looking at her fellow actress, can’t imagine how they are going to make this work. it’s clear there’s a declared war between them and from what the brunette can get, it’s not going to finish anytime soon.

_(Rachel)…No chains …to unlock. So free to do what he wants. He’s into what he’s got. He loves me, he loves you not. No matter what you do, he’s never gonna be with you. He’s into what he’s got. He loves me, he loves you not…_

The director yells _‘action’_ again and Rachel starts to ask the blonde about her life. Chloe taking full advantage of the not scripted lines, starts to tell a story about how she was dating a very hot guy who now is dating an awful dwarf. Rachel laughs, trying not to get out of character and as the song keeps playing in her mind, the brunette replies with a simply, “Then she must be a very pretty dwarf…” causing the blonde to roll her eyes.

_(Rachel)…You’re the kinda girl that’s always up for do or dare. Only want him just because he’s there. Always lookin’ for a new ride, the grass is greener on the other side. You’re the kinda girl who’s not used to hearin’ no (No). All your lovers try to take you where you wanna go (Go). Doesn’t matter how hard you try never gonna get with my guy…_

The scene continues to flow between indirect sarcastic commentaries between the girls, but the director seems to be pleased to say the least with how these two are interaction with each other. The restaurant scene comes to an end and the two girls stand up and walk together to the main door and outside the _‘restaurant’_ until the director yells _‘cut’_.

_(Rachel)…No chains to unlock. So free to do what he wants (What he wants). He’s into what he’s got (And that’s me). He loves me, he loves you not. No matter what you do. He’s never gonna be with you (With you). He’s into what he’s got. He loves me, he loves you not…_

The staff crew immediately starts to add more stuff for the small walk the girls are going to have for the final part of the scene and as Rachel keeps singing, she notices that the blonde keeps staring at her from head to toe.

_(Rachel)…Doesn’t matter what you do, he’s never gonna be with you. Give it your all girl, give it all ya got. You can take a chance and take your best shot. Say what you want girl, do whatcha do. He’s never gonna make it with you…_

The director gives new instructions for the scene and Chloe and Rachel listen carefully, none of them wanting to look unprofessional in front of the other. This was now a face to face, diva off and both were determined to win it.

_(Rachel)…You can pout your cherry lips, try to tempt him with a sweet kiss (Sweet kiss). You can bat your pretty eyes (Pretty eyes). He ain’t got his hands tied…_

After the new extras are placed in their respective positions, Rachel and Chloe start to walk along the set sideways and keep the small chat between them. Rachel shares a bit of her story while Chloe pretends to listen very carefully.

_(Rachel)…No chains to unlock. So free to do what he wants. He’s into what he’s got. He loves me, he loves you not…No matter what you do. He’s never gonna be with you. He’s into what he’s got (Take your best shot). He loves me, he loves you not…_

When they reach the traffic light, both girls say their respective goodbyes and after exchanging numbers, the brunette cross the street to the left and the blonde to the right.  

_(Rachel)…No chains to unlock. So free to do what he wants (What he wants). He’s into what he’s got (And that’s me). He loves me, he loves you not. No matter what you do, he’s never gonna be with you (He’s my guy). He’s into what he’s got (And that’s me). He loves me, he loves you not. (Loves you not)…_

When the song comes to an end, Rachel vaguely hears the director yelling the last _‘cut.’_ and announcing that they can all go home. A bit relieved to be able to go home, the brunette starts to walk away towards her trailer to fetch her things, not noticing that Chloe is following right behind her.

When the girls are near the exit set door Chloe grabs Rachel’s arm and makes her turn around. Rachel looks at the blonde with a confused frown, and Chloe just says, “Just so you know _darling_ , he’s going to leave you as soon as I walk back into his life…He still has feelings for me. You know I dumped him right? That means I can get him back whenever I want!”

Rachel laughs ironically and Chloe, who was expecting a very different reaction, just adds, “I’m glad you’re laughing, because you’ll see that happening really soon. In fact, your _‘boyfriend’_ will sleep in my bed tonight!”

Rachel burst into laughter and giving her best bitch performance so far, one that certainly Santana would be proud of, says, “Well, then good luck trying to break into my house, because just so you know _darling_ , he lives with me!” The brunette adds, turning around and walking away. Leaving Chloe standing there with her face completely flushed.

After Kurt followed Blaine into his old room when the hazel-eyed man stormed out of the dinner, he just let him cry and pull out all the feelings he was keeping inside. After some time, Kurt, still rubbing his fiance’s back, asks softly, “Are you feeling better?”

Blaine nods still sobbing and wipes his eyes and nose with the back of his navy blue sweater sleeve. Kurt smiles and just continues stroking his fiance’s back trying to comfort him somehow. Blaine takes a deep breath and sighing, he speaks for the first time since they entered his old childhood room, “I just don’t understand why-why nothing I do is ever good enough for him. I thought that maybe after a while he was going to accept me for who I am, but he can’t Kurt. He just can’t. My mama tries to help, like she did with the trip to Vegas, but I don’t think he’s ever going to accept it…and that hurts deeply. I know that sometimes I try to pretend that I don’t care about his approval, but you know that the truth is that I do care a lot! He’s my dad Kurt!”

Kurt looks at the man still crying in his lap and tries to reassure him otherwise. “I know you care Blaine, he’s your dad and you love him, but don’t think that he’s never going to accept you. I’m sure he’ll understand and accept you. He will accept us, one day…just have some patience.”

Blaine sobs again. “I’m not sure about that Kurt, you saw what he did tonight in front of Burt and Carole…What he said, how he acted…”

“I think that what happened tonight was just an unfortunate side effect of what he’s struggling with. I think that his problem is that he actually doesn’t know how to react, give him some time and he’ll understand…”

“I don’t think so…” Blaine replies petulantly.

“Well I do…And between you and I, we both know I’m always right…” Kurt says winking playfully to his fiance, trying to light the mood a little.

Blaine laughs and rolls his eyes playfully at the man he loves. Kurt always knows what to say to make him laugh and feel better. “Anyways, let’s stop talking about my daddy issues…I have to show you something….” Blaine says standing up and wiping the tears from his eyes.

Kurt frowns confused, while Blaine just walks to his old closet and pulls out an old box. Kurt looks at the box getting more confused and asks, “What’s that? You’ve never showed me that box before and I’m sure I’ve been here enough times to know that that box was certainly not here before…I’ve snooped around your closet and I’ve never seen that…”

“I know…It was at the attic, but I called my mom a few days ago and asked her to bring it here so I could share this with you…” Blaine explains as he places the box in the bed.

“Why this box was at the attic? What’s inside?” Kurt asks out of curiosity as he looks at the closed box.

“It was there, because it contains something from my past that I don’t like to talk about…” Blaine simply replies.

“I thought I knew everything about your past…” Kurt replies even more confused than before. This mysterious box was intriguing.

“And you do, but there’s just this little period of my life we’ve never talked about and now it’s time…” Blaine replies as he opens the box and starts to take out what seem like old pictures of Blaine during middle school.

Kurt looks at the pictures a bit surprised. Blaine’s a bit chubby, not fat at all, but still not his skinny high school self. Kurt asks intrigued, “Is that you?”

Blaine nods, “I’ve always felt insecure about myself, that’s nothing new. I’ve been talking about this with Dr. Stevens and we agreed that the origin of my issues started back during this time…when I was a kid”

Kurt looks at him surprised. “Really?”

Blaine nods again. “Yes, when I was in middle school I gained some weight, not a lot and I was okay with that. I mean it was not like if I was fat or anything…I was just a kid that enjoyed ice cream way too much, but during that time I also started to realize that I was gay and the things with my dad started to fall apart. He was always pressuring me to do stuff he considered proper for a man and when we both realized I was who I am, he started to change a lot. That sudden change, really confused me and I lost control of myself. I was just a kid who had to deal with his sexuality and a perfect and handsome big brother who became my dad’s favorite in the blink of an eye. Obviously that combination made me have some self-esteem issues…I wanted to be perfect just like my big brother, so back then I starved myself to death like I did a few months ago and it worked. Suddenly I was as _‘handsome’_ as Cooper and people seem to notice it and that made me feel good…but most importantly, it made me feel confident…at least at that moment I had one less thing to worry about.”

Kurt looks at the pictures he’s holding in his hand and tells his fiance, “So, last year when you started gaining weight again these ghosts just returned?”

Blaine shrugs. “I think they never left, they were just hiding, but yes…that’s what happened…”

“And the incident at the Sadie Hawkins dance happened before or after this?” Kurt asks intrigued, trying to put the last piece of the puzzle. A piece, he didn’t know existed, but it made sense somehow. It was as if suddenly everything about his soon-to-be husband made sense.

“After, with this new confidence I got from this dark part of my life, I came out as gay at the school and well…You know the rest of the story…I asked the only other gay guy from the school to go with me to the Sadie Hawkins dance, we went to the dance, they beat us and I transferred to Dalton.”

Kurt smiles. “Thank you for sharing this with me…” He says still looking at the pictures, and trying to light the mood a little, he says, “And let me tell you one thing mister…we need to take one of these pictures with us to our family album because you look adorable! Chubby or not, you’re still adorable to me!”

Blaine blushes and laughs for the first time since he stormed away from the table. Kurt smiles back and excited he exclaims, “See? There’s the man I love…Adorable and dreamy as ever!”

Blaine shakes his head and smiles at the blue-eyed man. “Pick one picture quickly. I think it’s better if we get rid of this little Pandora’s box…” He adds, encouraging Kurt to pick one of the pictures.

Kurt quickly looks at all of them and picks one in which Blaine is dressed as a turkey for Thanksgiving day. He looks adorable wearing his costume and Kurt thinks this picture can be something their future family would love to look at. Blaine rolls his eyes when he notices the picture Kurt chose and closes the old box, placing it again in the closet.

“Do you have more pictures that I’ve not seen before?” Kurt asks curious again.

“No…These were the only ones, but let’s forget about those pictures okay? I don’t really like to relive bad memories…” Blaine says walking back to the bed and sitting next to Kurt who’s still seated cross-legged in the middle of the queen-size bed.

Kurt smiles playfully and using his sexy tone, the one that is reserved just to the man in front of him, he adds, “Well, if you don’t want to relive bad memories, but you’re willing to relive some old memories. I’m sure we might try to relive the first time I stayed here…” He adds slowly getting closer to his fiance.

Blaine smiles back and leans over to quickly kiss his fiance. “You’re playing with fire Kurt…Do not forget that my parents and yours are downstairs…”

Kurt smiles flirtatiously and kissing his love again, he asks. “So?” challenging Blaine.

Blaine burst into laughter and kisses him rolling his eyes playfully. He knows they are acting like two teenagers again trying to make out when their parents are downstairs.

The class ends, and Brittany and Mike grab their hand towels and water bottles before walking out of the class exhausted by the extreme physical activity.

“It was so much fun dancing with you again, we should try to do this more often.” Brittany quips with a smile while wiping the sweat from the back of her neck. There was no doubt that she was looking forward to a long hot shower when she got home with how much she sweat that day.

Mike nods with a smile. “Yes! Absolutely! The dancers I work with got nothing on you Brittany Pierce. I’m sorry Pierce-Lopez. It’s still hard to get used to your new long name Britt, but I like it, it suits you!”

Brittany throws her head back in laughter, “You’re just saying that.” A blush creeps across pale cheeks and she continues “And I know my new name suits me, that’s why I chose the name of the academy even before I knew San wanted to propose…Anyways, but I’m done for the day and Santana should be home in a couple hours from set, would you like to come over for dinner? We could watch a movie or something…” She trails off, while they keep making their way to the entrance of the building.

“I would love to go, the plan sounds amazing, but I actually have a flight to catch in a couple hours, I’m headed to New York to see Kurt and Blaine. They need my expertise for some wedding moves.” Mike says as they reach the lobby.

Brittany laughs at the mental image of Mike trying to teach their two friends new dance moves. “You better show Kurt some new moves, I mean he has been doing the same shoulders, hips move since I know him!”

“I know! That’s why I’m heading there! They really need any help they can get…” Mike says joking.

“One hundred percent true!” Brittany says nodding her head and whispering to Emily to show Mike where the men’s locker room are.

Emily nods and makes her way to around the counter, stopping in front of the tall Asian man. “This way Mr. Chang.”

Mike looks to her and starts following her, but he stops before going down the hallway and turns back to Brittany. “See you at the wedding!”

“Okay, see you at the wedding! Take care okay?”

“I will…bye Britt!”

“Bye!” Brittany exclaims waving her hand and grabbing her back as she walks through the main doors. it was time to go home.

Kurt and Blaine are still in Blaine’s room laying in the bed, playing with each other’s hands when suddenly someone knocks the white wooden door. The boys look at each other and Cooper’s voice is heard through the door. “Blaine? Kurt? Can I come in? Are you two fully dressed?” He says using his mocking voice.

Blaine rolls his eyes and stands from the bed to open the door to his brother. Cooper tries to cover his eyes and making fun of them, he enters saying, “Sorry little brother, I didn’t mean to interrupt or anything. We all know you two sneak here to do something else than talk, we heard the noises so…”

Kurt rolls his eyes too. “You’re not interrupting, believe it or not we just talked…and I don’t know which noises you heard because we didn’t hear a thing…What do you want Coop?” Kurt asks, not letting his future brother in law to keep making fun of his fiance. Blaine is not in the right state of mind to keep up with Cooper’s shenanigans.

Cooper laughs and says, “Nothing, actually, don’t get mad at me Kurt. I just wanted to see if my little bro was okay, you two missed dessert…We had a delicious strawberry cheesecake. A little, way too little if you ask me, bird told us that cheesecake was your favorite thing in the world! Well that and my brother I want to believe…”

Kurt laughs and nods blushing a little as he thinks to himself how much he would like to combine his two favorite things in the world. _‘Blaine plus cheesecake…and not just cheesecake, but strawberry cheesecake…God! What a combination!’_

“Why are you blushing?” Cooper asks looking at his soon-to-be brother in law with knowingly eyes.

“Am I? No! I’m not…It’s just-It’s just really hot in here! That’s all” Kurt immediately covers up, ducking his head to hide his blush from the prying blue eyes that are looking at him intently.

“Yeah right…” Cooper teases as he continues, “Anyways, I’m also here to inform you that your parents just left Kurt…They said they would see you two later at their house. But that’s weird, because I thought you two were staying here, I wanted to show you my new commercials, but anyways I think I’ll have to wait…” Cooper trails off.

Blaine turns around and exclaims, “Wait! What!?”

“Yeah I have exclusive videos of my commercials, but don’t worry little brother I can email them to you two if you are dying to watch them…” Cooper replies, oblivious to the alarmed tone in his brother’s voice.

“Not that Cooper! Burt and Carole! They left? Why? I mean, did dad say something? Did he do something? Why did they leave so soon?” Blaine asks alarmed.

Cooper shrugs. “I don’t know squirt, I was at the kitchen helping mama with some tea and cookies to continue talking. All I know is that at some point Burt talked to dad about something because Carole told us, and then our old man just went right to his office and closed the door. I knocked, but he ignored me, so Mama tried to make Burt and Carole to stay for a little longer but they said that the trip back to Lima was not that short so they excused themselves and left…”

Blaine explodes and without really thinking what he’s doing, he runs downstairs heading to his dad’s office. Kurt and Cooper look at each other and immediately run right behind the hazel-eyed man. Blaine, opens his dad’s office door and as the anger raises through his body, he starts to sing.

_(Blaine)…Hey dad, look at me think back and talk to me. Did I grow up according to the plan? And do you think I’m wasting my time doing things I wanna do? But it hurts when you disapprove all along…_

Nicholas looks at his son completely confused. Blaine walks to the fancy mahogany desk and starts to throw all the papers, picture frames and everything in there to try to prove how angry he is. Meanwhile, outside the small office, Kurt and Cooper are looking at each other and deliberating whether to stop this insanity now or let it go. With one last knowingly look, the two blue-eyed men decide to go to the kitchen with Carole and Pam and wait to see what happens between the two Anderson’s men. Apparently it was about time for Blaine to finally have that moment alone with his dad.

_(Blaine)…And now I try hard to make it. I just wanna make you proud…I’m never gonna be good enough for you. I can’t pretend that I’m alright…and you can’t change me…_

Blaine turns around, no longer facing his dad, and notices that one of the frames he threw to the floor is now broken. Behind the shattered glass, there’s a picture of Cooper and Blaine when they were younger. Blaine has 5 or 6 years old and Cooper 14 or 15. His dad is holding them both and they all look happy. Blaine tries hard, but the tears finally betray him and start to roll uncontrollably down his face.

_(Blaine)…’Cause we lost it all. Nothing lasts forever, I’m sorry I can’t be perfect. Now it’s just too late and we can’t go back. I’m sorry, I can’t be perfect…_

Memories of his childhood start to flash through Blaine’s eyes as he pours his soul and heart into the song. Images from the time when he was a toddler come back and forth before his eyes. When his dad used to play with him at the park, when they went on vacation to that awesome beach and Cooper got drunk, or when his dad taught him how to ride a bike. He wants to hate his dad, but deep down, he can’t. He loves him so much and that is why this is so hard for him.

_(Blaine)…I try not to think about the pain I feel inside. Did you know you used to be my hero? All the days you spent with me now seem so far away and it feels like you don’t care anymore…_

Nicholas clears his throat when he notices that his son is still singing but he’s apparently frozen in his spot. Blaine turns around to face his dad again as he keeps singing those hurtful lyrics to the man in front of him. Blaine is so mad that he doesn’t even notice the small tears that are also running down Nicholas’ face. If he had payed a bit of attention to the other’s man face, he would have noticed that despite everything, his dad was looking at him with pride and some kind of adoration that only a loving father could give to a son.

_(Blaine)…And now I try hard to make it. I just wanna make you proud….I’m never gonna be good enough for you. I can’t stand another fight…And nothing’s alright…_

The lyrics of the song are hitting home in both men’s hearts. Blaine’s eyes are bright red of crying and by this point, he’s not singing anymore, he’s yelling the lyrics, trying to make them resound through the room. In a way, he thinks that by yelling he’s showing his dad, how deeply hurt he is. Nicholas is swallowing slowly trying to keep his emotions at bay, but his lips are trembling as he’s trying hard to stop the tears from rolling.

_(Blaine)…’Cause we lost it all nothing lasts forever. I’m sorry, I can’t be perfect. Now it’s just too late and we can’t go back. I’m sorry, I can’t be perfect… Nothing’s gonna change the things that you said. Nothing’s gonna make this right again! Please don’t turn your back I can’t believe it’s hard just to talk to you, but you don’t understand…_

Blaine closes his eyes as the song is coming to an end and like in a movie, more memories of all those happy days when he was just a little kid flash through his eyes. _‘That’s it!’_ He thinks to himself. That’s his problem, he wants so bad to feel like that again, loved and cherished by his own dad and so far that seems impossible.

_(Blaine)…’Cause we lost it all nothing lasts forever. I’m sorry, I can’t be perfect. Now it’s just too late and we can’t go back. I’m sorry, I can’t be perfect. ‘Cause we lost it all nothing lasts forever. I’m sorry, I can’t be perfect. Now it’s just too late and we can’t go back. I’m sorry, I can’t be perfect…_

The song ends and Blaine opens his eyes wiping away the angry tears that rolled down his face during the whole performance. Looking at the picture lying on the floor, he promises to himself that he won’t cry again in front of his dad, never again…or so he says.

Two thin leather straps from a Michael Kors purse rest on a tan shoulder as Santana picks up her keys and makes her way out of her trailer. Closing the door behind her she locks the trailer’s door before making her way towards her black Audi the network provided her. As she walks along the paved road she passes her director. Giving him a pressed lip smile, allowing her dimples to pop out, and a polite head nod, she continues to walk down the dark pathway.

She’s quickly stopped when she hears the man now behind her yell out, “Hey, Santana!”

 Turning around she raises her brows in question as they both start walking back towards each other, meeting halfway.

“I just wanted to say you did a great job today. I know you struggled a little with that last scene, but in the end you nailed it.” The balding grey haired man places a comforting hand on the Latina’s shoulder.

Putting on her cocky smile Santana smirks as she quips out, “ You know it.” Followed by a wink. She then quickly looks to the ground while running her bottom lip through clenched teeth. Chancing a glance back up to the older man she sees him giving her a knowing look. She brings her head up to meet the man’s gaze directly, with soft eyes she breathes out a simple but loaded, “Thanks.” Letting her walls down momentarily.

The director gives her a small nod accompanied by a genuine smile before letting his hand fall from her shoulder, giving her a scrunch of his nose then turning back to walk in the opposite direction.

Santana stands there for a moment longer. Letting her shoulders fall, she sighs before continuing her short walk to her car. Once she reaches the sleek black car, she presses a button on the key-chain in her hand, eliciting a _‘beep’_ from the car as she unlocks it. She slips into the car, ignoring the cold temperature of the leather seats on the back of her thighs that aren’t covered by the short blue dress the clings to her. Rolling her head across her shoulders, she tries to work out the tension built up over the long day. As she slips the key into the ignition and roars the engine to life she can’t help but smile at the thought of going home to her wife. “Time to go home.” She whispers to herself. “The one place I never have to _‘play a role’_.”

After making her way through the gate and turning left out and onto the streets, Santana rolls down the window. Sticking her hand out and feeling the rush of the night’s cool air, she smiles as she begins to sing.

 _(Santana)_ … _I would never have known, the way it feels to love without the love you showered down upon me. Warm, warm as the sun, melting away the rain giving me strength to face another morning. So many times I felt afraid and turn to you to find my way. I reach inside to find you there. You were with me everywhere…_

The Audi comes to a complete stop in front of a red light. Santana looks out the driver side window, looking across the street she sees Cafe De Leche. Images of her and Brittany  run through her mind. Throwing their heads back laughing together; making funny facial expressions and people watching while making commentary, just being themselves, together. Santana smiles at the memory before turning her attention back to the light in front of her that just turned green. Lifting her food off the break and easing onto the gas, moving along with the flow of the late night traffic.

_(Santana)…All, It would take all, all of my life to find someone more there for me, there for me. And I’m never alone, ’cause in my heart I know ,you’re always there for me, there for me…_

The brunette flips on her blinker before turning right onto a new street. She travels further down the road, looking out the windows she smiles while singing. Being in L.A. is a good change from New York. Of course she misses the big old city sometimes, but L.A. brought a whole new experience to her life, one she was fully ready to embrace. She cruises over a bridge before turning onto some road she had no idea the name of. On the left side of the road Santana watches a woman bend down to a homeless man and gives him a scarf and a wad of money she pulled from her pocket. Santana can’t help but think the woman’s kindness reminds her of her wife and how she always sees the best in people, even if it was a random stranger. As her thoughts travel off to the tall blonde waiting for her at home, Santana’s raspy voice sings with even more emotion.

_(Santana)…I, I won’t let go, of precious memories. They are the light of hope that burns inside me. And every time I lose my way you shine for me and I’m okay. You lift me way beyond it all. And You never let me fall…_

Santana continues to sing as she shakes her head at herself, smiling and thinking how everything reminds her of Brittany. She doesn’t know when she turned into this overly emotion sap, that if it was someone else she would for sure make fun of; but now she can’t even bring herself to care. She has everything she’s ever wanted. Her dreams were now a reality. Brittany was always the one person she could completely be herself around. And now she couldn’t get home fast enough, wanting to just let her hair and her walls down and crawl up with her wife for the night. It’s all of these small things that make Santana know that Brittany is and always will be her one true love.

_(Santana)…All, it would take all, all of my life to find, someone more there for me, there for me. And I’m never alone ’cause in my heart I know, you’re always there for me, there for me…_

Headlights shine on the concrete wall in front of Santana as she pulls the car into her assigned parking spot. Shifting the car into park she grabs her keys and purse, and steps out of the car. She shifts her purse onto her shoulder and makes her way up the sidewalk and through the tall buildings front door. Slipping into the elevator she presses the number three button. She waits till she hears the familiar _‘ding’_ and the two doors slowly open before stepping out of the elevator and walking down the long hallway, singing the end of the song as makes her way to the apartment door.

_(Santana)…You’ll always catch me when I fall…All, it would take all, all of my life to find, someone more there for me, there for me. And I’m never alone, ’cause in my heart I know, you’re always there for me, there for me. I know. I know, you’re always there for me…_

The Latina slips into her apartment and the smile that is already plastered on her face grows when she is met with the sight of her wife cuddled up on the sofa. The blonde is wrapped up in a purple plush blanket with Lord Tubbington sitting in the crook of her legs.

Brittany’s petting the large feline as she hears the soft click of the front door closing shut. Tearing her eyes away from the T.V. screen, a smile quickly splits across her face when blue eyes meet the soft brown ones of her wife’s.

Santana makes her way towards the couch, dropping her purse and keys in the empty chair as she passes it. She watches Brittany as she shifts further back on the couch, effectively making room from Santana. The brunette slips off her heels before softly leaning down, laying on her side with her back to Brittany.

The taller woman slips her arms around her wife’s supple waist, leaning her head down and ghosting her lips over Santana’s exposed shoulder before placing a soft kiss there then moving up to her neck and whispering in the brunettes ear, “Welcome home.”

Shifting in her laid position, Santana rolls over to meet her wife’s gaze face to face. Bringing her right hand up to cup a pale cheek, she runs her thumb along Brittany’s bottoms lip before leaning in and capturing it between hers.

Blaine is still breathing hard after finishing the song. His dad is looking at him with surprise evident in his eyes, but he’s not saying anything. He’s letting his son to calm down for a few seconds. Blaine looks up at his dad, and it’s only then that he realizes that his dad has tears in his eyes too. He freezes, he wasn’t expecting that kind of reaction from the man who taught him that crying was for the weak.

Nicholas looks at his son and with his voice still a little broken, he says, “Could you sit down please?”

Blaine, not sure of what to do anymore, remains standing. His eyes fixed to the man in front of him. Nicholas takes a deep breath and looking up at his son, he says again, “Please Blaine?”

Blaine reluctantly sits down in one of the chairs. Nicholas sits in front of him and without hesitation he starts to speak. “You have every right to feel angry, I’ve been acting stupid and believe me or not, I was on my way to your room, but I’m glad you’re here…though that song was not what I wanted to hear, if you ask me…”

Blaine looks at him confused and his dad continues, “Today I realized I’ve made a lot of mistakes in my life and perhaps the biggest one has been failing as a father, failing as _your_ father and I want to start fixing that. Tonight I’ll play the role I should have been playing since you and your brother were born. It’s time that you and I, that we have a talk that I’ve been trying so hard to avoid all these years…”

Blaine suddenly feels uneasy. _‘What’s going on?’_ He thinks to himself. And his father, who hasn’t kept his eyes away from him, notices that flash of fear and uncertainty in his eyes, so with a calm voice, he says, “I’m not going to scold you Blaine…Don’t worry, I just wanna talk to you, like your father…”

Blaine relaxes a little and Nicholas looks down a bit ashamed as realization hits him. This is the first time that he is ever going to talk to his son like a father. “I’m 20 years later, right?” He states.

Blaine doesn’t reply, he’s trying hard to understand what’s happening. Nicholas sobs loudly and Blaine’s eyes open widely. “Oh God! Are you really crying?” The hazel-eyed man asks surprised.

Nicholas shrugs and looking up at his son with his blue teary eyes, he replies, “A bit…What? Now you’re going to tell me that men are not allowed to cry?”

Blaine shakes his head. “No, but you said that crying was for the weak, and the last time I saw you crying a little was when there was that shooting at the school though I’m not sure if that single tear counts as crying…”

Nicholas nods and closes his eyes for a few seconds, remembering that day. “You didn’t see me, but I actually cried a lot that day. When your mother called to inform me what had happened at the school, I was in the middle of a meeting and I had to excuse myself because I needed to run to the bathroom to cry like a baby. That time I was really scared, scared of many things…of losing you, of losing our family…but I was a coward, I didn’t tell you what I was really feeling, I didn’t tell you how proud I was, I am, of you and I’m really sorry for that. You know? It’s curious, but sometimes I feel lost. Being a father is not easy, most of the time I don’t know if I’m doing the right thing, and judging by what happened today, it is clear that I, indeed, have not been doing anything right…”

Blaine sobs a little. He had promised himself not to cry, but suddenly he was no longer in control of his emotions. Nicholas, unaware of what was going on through his son’s mind, continues speaking, “Blaine, have you ever been afraid? And by afraid I mean terrified…?”

Blaine nods, because he has, way too many times for his young age. “Well, I’ve only been terrified a few times in my life. The first time was when your grandfather died, I had your age and it was really hard for me. Then when you and your brother were born…”

Blaine chuckles because at this point he doesn’t know if his father is joking or just being sarcastic. Blaine can’t help but think that this is not real and somehow, he’s imagining it all.

“Don’t get me wrong Blaine, I was just terrified by the immensity of the responsibility of raising a family. You still do not know how it feels to know that someone else is going to completely depend on you. It’s a pretty big responsibility and it’s frightening…anyways, I was telling you about the times I’ve been terrified” Blaine nods allowing his father to continue. “Another time was when you were attacked at that school dance some years ago…”

Blaine’s eyebrows scrunch in confusion, he clearly remembers his dad’s words that day and they were very far from being the words of a concerned father, so unable to keep his thoughts to himself, he starts to say, “But you said–”

Nicholas quickly interrupts. “I know what I said…but I was lying. I have always worried about you Blaine, for heaven’s sake! You’re my son! I know that our father/son relationship hasn’t been the best, but I’ve always cared about you. And that’s what brings me to what happened today…”

Blaine, trying to keep his emotions under control, asks coyly, “Today?”

His dad simply nods. “Yes, today…it’s funny right? But someone else had to come here to tell me what I’ve always known.”

Blaine looks at his dad a bit confused and Nicholas continues, “They are a good family son, you’re getting married to a great man and I’m sure you can always count on them when you have a problem, but I also want you to know that you can also count on me, on your family if you ever need it.”

Blaine sobs loudly. That’s what he always wished for, but never thought it would be possible. His dad continues, “I know that I have not been the best father, but I promise you that I’m trying really hard to change that.”

“Dad…” Blaine whispers.

“No Blaine, please let me finish…there’s so much I want to tell and I can’t find the right words to say it. First of all I want to apologize for my attitude tonight and probably my attitude during all these years. I can’t promise you to accept everything that comes with being your father in one day, but I can promise you that I am going to try it and I am sure that with your help I am going to get it. You know that this whole situation has been difficult for me and I’m not going to explain my _‘reasons’_ and I’m using brackets for reasons, because today, thanks to your future father in law, I know I’ve been mistaken my whole life. Anyways, I just want you to know that though it’s hard for me, I accept you as who you are and I accept your frie–fiance too. I support your way of loving and most importantly, and this is hard for me and you know it because I’m not a man who expresses his feeling openly…but I want you to know that despite all that had happened between us, I love you Blaine…I really love you, unconditionally.”

It takes Blaine a whole straight minute to process what his father is saying. He’s mentally pinching himself to make sure this isn’t a dream and that he heard clearly. _‘I love you too…’_ Wiping away the tears he swore he wouldn’t let down, Blaine stands up from his seat and walks the short distance to his father’s chair and looking down at the taller man, he says, “Thank you dad…You have no idea how much that…this whole conversation means to me.” Blaine says sticking his hand out to shake his father’s hand knowing that they have finally reached a mutual agreement, but he is surprised when his father doesn’t shake his hand back. Instead he stands up and smiling a big white toothed smile, the old man pulls Blaine into a bone crushing hug.

“Please forgive this old man who sometimes forgets he has the best family in the world. I love you Blaine, I really, really love you!” Nicholas exclaims with his eyes closed as he treasures this little moment with his son.  

Blaine just smiles and sobs loudly. “I love you too dad.” Nicholas sobs too and hugs Blaine even tighter. Between happy tears, Nicholas whispers “I don’t think I ever actually congratulated my baby boy on getting married, so congratulations son!” He says not letting go of Blaine.

Blaine laughs with tears still in his eyes and whispers a shy _‘Thank you’_ as he realizes that now everything in his life is in its place. Nicholas opens his eyes and looking up, he notices an extra pair of blue eyes peeking through the door. Laughing, he exclaims, “You can come in Coop…”

Cooper walks in wearing a big smile and looking at his brother and father, he says, “Sorry guys I really didn’t want to interrupt, but I was trying to save this powerful emotion for a future audition…this was intense, but sooooo touchy!” The blue-eyed young man expresses touching his own heart and smiling like a fool.

Blaine laughs loudly and extends his hand to reach for his brother. Cooper happily takes it and the three Anderson’s men hug each other tightly like they haven’t done in more than 13 years.

Outside the door, Pamela and Kurt are hugging each other too and crying at the scene displayed in front of them through the barely opened door. Now, finally they were going to be a real family.

Rachel opens the door of her apartment and walks in hoping to find Wesley watching a movie or something, but the place is empty. Walking into their room, she hears the familiar sound of the water falling in the shower, so opening the door, the brunette yells, “I‘m home!”

The blue-eyed actor turns around and removing the soap from his face, he replies, “I’ll be there in a minute…”

Rachel doesn’t reply back and she just walks back to the living room and takes a seat in one of the chairs. When Wesley comes out of the room, he’s just wearing a pair of sweatpants and his torso is naked. Rachel takes a small look towards her boyfriend and sighs, her expression is serious.

“Are you alright?” Wesley asks noticing the frown on the brunette’s face.

Rachel pouts and barely looking up, she replies, “Yeah…It’s just that, look at you! You’re looking all hot over there and she’s a model, Wes! I think you forgot to mention she looked like she was photoshopped!”

Wes laughs sweetly at his girlfriend and walks the small distance between them to grab her hands. He now understands the reason behind that sad look upon her face. “Hey don’t think like that.” He says raising Rachel’s head with his finger. “She’s beautiful, but you’re gorgeous…”

Rachel keeps her gaze down and laughing again, Wesley says, “Okay, so gorgeous doesn’t work with you huh?…Ummm let me think, then maybe flawless? Stunning? Exquisite? Glorious? Dazzling? One of a kind? My golden star? You choose…You’re everything to me okay? She’s just another empty pretty girl…”

Rachel smiles softly, but the smile doesn’t reach her ears. “No, baby, give me the smile I love…” Wesley adds trying to tickle his girlfriend. Rachel then smiles broadly and with a white toothed smile, Wes exclaims, “There it is! That’s the smile that brightens my days.”

Rachel smiles again and Wes says, “By the way, I’m glad you’re home. I found this by the door when I arrived, it’s for you…” He says giving Rachel a white envelope with a gold sealing.

Rachel looks at the white envelope and confused, she asks, “What is it?”

Wes shrugs. “I don’t know, it looks like an invitation, guessing by the sealing I think it’s from the network. I’m sure I’ve seen that sealing before.”

Rachel opens the envelope and her eyes open widely. Wes asks anxiously, “What is it?”

Rachel smiles and screams, “Oh my God! Oh my God! Oh my God! We have a release date!”

Wes looks at Rachel not really following her and asks again, “What?”

Rachel looks into a pair of curious blue eyes and smiling just replies. “It’s the invitation for the screening of the show!”

The yellow cab pulls over in front of the apartments building. Kurt climbs down the car and quickly walks to the trunk as Blaine pays the fee. Kurt grabs their small shared bag, the one they took for the small weekend trip to Blaine’s parents’ house, and walks to the doorway. Blaine opens the front door for him and with big smiles they start to climb the stairs.

“Well, everything turned out better than we thought…Don’t you think?” Kurt exclaims still excited.

“I know!” Blaine replies with a huge grin on his face. He just had one of the best weekends of his life.

“Now we just have one thing to worry about…” Kurt says.

“What?”

“Our wedding vows honey! Are yours ready?” Kurt asks out of curiosity.

Blaine laughs. “I won’t tell you unless you tell me…”

“Ummm…Well, mine are partially ready…” Kurt lies, the truth is that he has the whole thing written down, he just needs to edit it.

“Well, mine are partially ready too…” Blaine lies too, because he also has his vows already written down and learned by heart.

They look at each other and smile. Deep down they both know that the other one is lying, but it’s a good white lie so they let it go. When they reach their apartment’s floor they stop in their tracks, because there is a guy sleeping in front of their loft’s door. His face is covered with the black hoodie that this unknown person is wearing and he has a small black bag next to him. Kurt and Blaine look at each other confused and Kurt whispers. “Oh god…He must be a homeless guy…You think we should call the police?”

Blaine shakes his head. He doesn’t know why, but for him, this man doesn’t look like a homeless guy. “No, let me try to wake him up, stand behind me just in case…Okay?’

Kurt nods and does what he was told to, stepping back and standing behind his fiance. Blaine leans over and very carefully, he starts to shake the unknown man trying to wake him. The man jumps scared and looks up to meet two pairs of confused and startled eyes.

“Mike?” Blaine asks recognizing his high school friend.

“Blaine! Kurt! God! I thought I’ll have to go and crash at Artie’s dorm! Glad you’re here! Are you ready to start dancing?” Mike exclaims smiling broadly at the two men.

Kurt laughs a bit relieved that the stranger was just their friend. “I thought we had agreed to meet you until tomorrow…” He says trying to understand why the dancer is at their home this early on a Sunday morning.

“Yeah I know, but I got an early ticket and here I am…I think we need to start ASAP!” Mike exclaims clapping his hands.

Blaine laughs too and standing up, he adds, “Okay, yeah that sounds perfect, but let us walk in first! We’re just arriving from Ohio…”

“You were in Ohio?” Mike asks as he stands up and moves from the front door allowing Blaine to open the metal door.

“Yeah!” Kurt exclaims excited. “We went to our very first Anderson-Hummel official family dinner!”

“So it’s going to be Anderson-Hummel huh? I thought Hummel-Anderson was going to win…but Anderson-Hummel sounds amazing! And how was the dinner?” Mike asks all friendly as they all make their way into the small apartment.

“It was great Mike, my dad finally accepted the wedding and we even talked and it was wonderful!” Blaine explains still excited about the recent events.

“That’s wonderful! Then we must hurry to start with the lessons! Now more than ever this wedding has to be perfect!” Mike exclaims sharing the excitement that his friends are showing.

“Yeah…we will start in a minute, just let us change our clothes and we will meet you back here, okay?” Kurt says excited.

“Okay, but hurry up guys that we have a lot to practice and just a few weeks before the wedding!”

Blaine and Kurt nod and walk to their room to leave their bag and change clothes. Kurt starts to rummage around their closet trying to find his brand new black leotard.

“What are you looking for?” Blaine asks confused as he changes into his favorite sweatpants.

“The new leotard I bought for the ballet classes…” Kurt replies as he exclaims _‘Bingo!’_ When he finds the object he was looking for.

Blaine laughs and suddenly Mike pokes through the curtain. “Hurry up guys, especially you Kurt! You need to learn more moves for your wedding! Come on! The wedding is in just a few weeks! We don’t want clumsy grooms!” He exclaims as he disappears and Kurt and Blaine look at each other and laugh.

When the boys emerge from the room already wearing their comfy dancing clothes, Mike turns on the stereo. Kurt starts to move his shoulders already getting into the dancing mood.

“Kurt! Stop sashaying! Let’s start! Today I’ll be playing the role of your dancing teacher…are you two ready?”

Blaine and Kurt nod smiling and Mike claps his hands excited. “Perfect then let’s start! Our first lesson…Ball dance! We don’t want your first dance to be a joke and since I don’t know what song you chose for that special occasion I picked one that I’m sure you’re familiar with.” He says as the notes of _‘So Close’_ by Jon McLaughlin start to resound through the speakers.

Blaine and Kurt smile at each other, because they love that song. It’s not the one they are going to dance at the wedding, _but who haven’t watched Enchanted and dreamed to dance that song?_

“I want you both singing okay?” Mike exclaims as the two boys nod and the lyrics begin.

_(Blaine)…You’re in my arms, and all the world is calm. The music playing on for only two. So close together and when I’m with you…So close to feeling alive…_

Blaine, following Mike’s instructions, grabs Kurt’s waist with his right hand and places his left hand on Kurt’s right hand. Kurt puts his left hand on Blaine’s shoulder as they start to slow dance following the beat of the song. Mike is looking at them intently and helping them to get to perfection the position.

_(Kurt)…A life goes by, romantic dreams will stop. So I bid mine goodbye and never knew. So close was waiting, waiting here with you and now forever I know, all that I want is to hold you so close…_

The song is so beautiful that the two soon-to-be husbands can’t help but look at each other with heart eyes and mess all the instructions Mike is giving them in the process. The beat of the song invites them to just hug each other and kiss until their lips hurt, but Mike keeps separating them as he patiently shows them how they are supposed to be dancing.

_(Kurt and Blaine)…So close to reaching that famous happy end. Almost believing this was not pretend. Now you’re beside me, and look how far we’ve come…So far we are so close…_

When the song reaches the music bridge. Mike takes the opportunity and shaking his head, exclaims, “No guys! Stop trying to kiss each other, we’re serious here!” Blaine and Kurt look at each other with sad expressions as their teacher helps them again to get into the right position for this dance.

“Let’s try it again, as soon as the lyrics begin I want to see you two dancing as professionals!” Mike exclaims and Kurt and Blaine just nod smiling. It’s funny to watch their friend in his professional self again.

_(Kurt)…Oh, how could I face the faceless days. If I should lose you now?…_

Kurt and Blaine get carried away with the song and forgetting Mike is there, they hug each other. Immediately, the professional dancer, comes closer and separate them again, marking the position they must follow to continue dancing. Kurt and Blaine nod, but they lost themselves in the depth of each other’s eyes as the song starts to play its last verse.

_(Kurt and Blaine)…Were so close to reaching that famous happy end and almost believing this was not pretend. Let’s go on dreaming for we know we are…so close, so close and still so far…_

When the song comes to an end, Blaine and Kurt can’t hold it any longer so Blaine completely ignoring Mike’s scolding words, leans Kurt’s body over and gives him a movie-like romantic kiss. Mike just rolls his eyes playfully and bites his lips to prevent from laughing at his ridiculous friends.

“Sorry…” Kurt exclaims as soon as the kiss is over.

“Don’t worry…I knew what I was getting myself into when I said yes, so I guess we’ll just have to rehearse even more…” Mike sighs as he looks between the two men. Knowing that these dancing lessons are going to be hardest he ever had to give.

“Okay…Let’s try it again!” Blaine exclaims already replaying the song.

“Okay, but this time you’re dancing with me Blaine…Let’s see if you want to kiss me!” Mike exclaims playfully and both Kurt and Blaine blush before bursting into laugh.


	11. Klaine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on the Glee Fan Project…Wesley’s ex girlfriend is now starring on Rachel’s show and although Rachel said she didn’t mind, the truth is she does because this girl is hot, like super hot! Santana had some issues filming her TV show but with Brittany’s help everything turned out for the best. You go girl! Finally, after 118 episodes, we met Blaine’s mysterious parents when Kurt and Blaine went all the way back to Westernville to have a very formal and awkward family dinner. About time right? It turned out that Blaine’s mom is a sweetheart, but his dad…Ummm, he’s not going to get the award for best dad of the world any time soon. Yikes! Cooper showed up too and we thank him for that because he made the whole event more funny. Anyways…After a few awkward moments, Nicholas said some really hurtful things, Blaine got mad and stormed away to his room. Burt got mad too and seizing the opportunity, he had a talk with Nicholas, who despite being a serious man, showed that he has a good heart…Awww. Blaine and Nicholas had a talk and forgave each other and now everything is in place for the big wedding…Well not everything, Mike is now helping the boys with some dance lessons…Awesome right?…And that’s what you missed on Glee!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s our eleventh episode! We’re near the end of our season (two more episodes) and we are not ready to say goodbye! This episode, as it title says, is the anticipated wedding of Kurt and Blaine. Obviously our writers gave the boys their time to enjoy their little happiness, but like in every wedding a lot of things happen around the main event, so don’t miss this episode because there are a lot of important conversations and decision being made in all the guests tables. Besides, some familiar faces are back and you’ll learn a little bit about their lives. As usual at the top you'll find a link to the intro video and the Episode 11 playlist of songs, in case we have included a song that you may not have heard of. Remember that we wrote the characters singing these songs with their own vocal arrangements in mind that’s why some of these songs are covers and some are the originals. We hope you enjoy them!

Intro Video

Episode 11 Playlist

A tall dark-haired man slides the silver key Kurt gave him the previous day into the lock of the loft door. Sliding slowly the heavy metal door open before making his way inside. It’s only 7AM and the city that never sleeps is still partially _sleeping_. Elliott knows he arrived early, but his friend had asked him in a very serious tone, to be there by 7:30AM sharp. Knowing better than to go against Kurt, he reluctantly dragged himself out of bed early this morning and now finds himself standing in the middle of the loft open space.

 _‘He must be awake already.’_ Elliott murmurs to himself as he makes himself at home. “Kurt!” He yells, expecting to find his best friend already awake and freaking out around the small apartment, but the loft is completely quiet, as if no one was there.

Confused, Elliott walks towards the room. Sliding back the curtains, he finds Kurt still cuddled up under the blankets, sleeping. He tries to suppress a smile as he walks to the bed and softly pokes Kurt to try and wake him up.

“Kurt…” He whispers, but the man doesn’t move.

“Kurt…” He tries again. This time a little louder, but his friend just grumbles in response. _‘Not a morning person, huh?’_ He jokes to himself as he watches his friend frowning in his sleep. Getting tired of trying to wake him using soft methods, he takes a deep breath and shakes Kurt roughly, “Okay! Come on Kurt! You have to get up! Your best man, a.k.a. myself, is here! And your maid of honor is on her way…Come on wake up!”

Kurt rolls over, still sleeping, and grumbles again causing Elliott to laugh. “Kurt! Get up! You only have like 7 hours to get ready!” The NYU student jokes.

“Hmmm…” Kurt mumbles, turning around and extending his hand looking for the man who was supposed to wake up next to him.

Elliott rolls his eyes and smiles playfully. “Blaine’s not here Kurt…You do remember what happens today, right?” He asks trying not to laugh.

In that moment, Kurt’s brain finally wakes up as realization hits him and his eyes snap open. Sitting up really fast, he looks around confused and looking up to his friend, he exclaims, “I’m getting married today!” A hint of excitement, anxiety and nervousness flashing through his blue eyes.

Eye’s scan over the black ink words written across the small sheet of paper that’s clutched in Blaine’s hands. He reads and rereads the lines on the paper trying to memorize every word, knowing he only has one chance to say his vows correctly. Next to him, watching the T.V, is his brother and two of his high school best friends. Taking a deep breath, Blaine looks up from his small piece of paper and looks between the people gather there. Cooper and Sam are lost watching some Transformers movie, while Tina seems to be writing something down in a black notebook she has with her.

“Tina?” Blaine suddenly asks.

“Yes, Boo?” The Asian girl replies with a huge grin on her face.

“What are you doing?” He asks out of curiosity.

“Oh! Just writing my speech for the wedding…You want me to help you rehearse your vows again?” She asks, looking at Blaine’s hands that are still holding the yellow piece of paper. She recognizes the sheet, after all, they have been rehearsing those vows over and over again since yesterday.

“Yes please…” Blaine replies smiling.

“Squirt, stop reading that. You already know every single word by heart, you won’t forget it, believe me! Besides, you’re an actor so, if you actually forget something when you’re in front of Kurt, then just play by ear…” Cooper chirps in.

“Yes bro, listen to your brother…You’ll do great, don’t worry.” Sam agrees.

“Okay, yeah…You’re right!” Blaine says as he takes a deep, deep breath trying to calm his nervousness. “Thanks anyways, Tina…” He adds smiling at his friend and pretending to fold the paper and focus his attention to the T.V.

“You’re welcome…” Tina replies back and resumes her writing.

Blaine tries to watch the movie for some minutes, but he can’t concentrate. Instead of relaxing, he just gets more anxious. Taking out the small piece of paper, he starts reading the few lines again and again. Cooper just rolls his eyes and keeps watching the movie.

After some minutes, Sam stands up and walks to the small fridge and taking out a can of soda, he asks, “Remind me again why we’re at a hotel? It’s not that I don’t appreciate this place, but you guys have better drinks at home…”

Blaine looking up from his vows, just replies, “Because Kurt and I decided we should probably spend the night apart and see each other until we are walking down the aisle…” He explains.

Sam frowns confused as to why his friends have to be at two separate places when they already live together. “But–”

“But nothing Sam! It’s tradition! Don’t ask silly things!” Tina interferes.

 _‘Tradition…Ummm…The rings!’_ Blaine thinks to himself alarmed as he remembers that they were supposed to pick up the rings yesterday. Looking to his right he speaks up, “Coop! Do we have the rings?”

Cooper shrugs and looks at Sam, Sam shrugs too and Blaine can’t help but narrow his eyes at the two men. “Don’t look at me like that! I didn’t know we were supposed to go ourselves, ask Tina.” Sam replies.

Tina gives Sam and Cooper a hard look and says, “Sam you are Blaine’s best friend and Cooper! You’re the best man! You both should know that we, as Blainey’s moral support team, are in charge of everything right? The rings are essential for a wedding…”

Cooper laughs and with his peculiar crooked smile, he replies. “Relax Tina, we know, but you, as the maid of honor, are like more aware of those details than us…”

Sam nods agreeing with the blue eyed actor, “Yeah, Tina and what is it that you’re suppose to do? I mean besides bossing around? Maid of honors are for the brides, so I don’t understand what’s your role in here…”

Tina gets a bit offended, feeling attacked by the two men. “Well, this wedding is different and about my role, certainly I’m doing more than you two together and that’s saying something pseudo groomsmen and best man…”

Sam scowls at her and Cooper ignores her. Blaine smiles at his friends and brother and says, “Relax Guys! All of you are important today, okay? And Tina, did you pick up the rings?”

Tina nods and Blaine smiles relieved as he lets out a soft, “Perfect”.

Cooper a bit tired of the conversation turns up the volume of the T.V. and both Blaine and Tina roll their eyes at the same time. After some minutes of silence between the four people in the room, there’s a knock on the door. Blaine turns around and facing the two men watching the movie, he asks, “Did any of you order something?”

Sam and Cooper shake their heads without looking away from the screen. Blaine frowns and looks at Tina. The Asian girls shrugs as she stands up and says, “Don’t worry I’ll get it.”

Tina opens the door and a tall black haired man is standing there, wearing a polite smile. “Yes?” She asks, not knowing who this man is, but finding him strangely familiar.

“Hi miss, is this Blaine’s Anderson room?” The man asks confused.

Tina nods as a voice inside the room yells, “Dad?”

With that, Tina finally gets why this man looked so familiar to her. It’s Mr. Anderson in person. Ashamed, the Asian girl quickly says a quick hello hugging Nicholas and taking a step back letting the man to walk into the room.

Cooper immediately stands from the bed and greets his dad. “Old man! What are you doing here?”

Nicholas just hugs his eldest son and smiles at him. Tina looks at Blaine who seems to be paralyzed, and quickly understanding what’s going on, she grabs Sam and pulls him toward the door. Sam murmurs a quick, “What?”

“Later…Let’s go…” Tina murmurs back.

“But–” Sam starts to complain, surely about missing the end of the movie, but the Asian girl shuts him up and taking Cooper’s hand she says, “We will give your guys a few minutes alone. Blaine, Mr. Anderson…We will be at the restaurant eating something, if you want to join us later”

Blaine nods and smiles as Cooper, Tina and Sam make their way out of the room.

Looking at his dad, Blaine finally takes a deep breath and murmurs a shy, “Hi…”

“Hi…” Nicholas replies back, still smiling at his son.

Blaine, not really knowing what else to say, ask the same thing as his brother. “Ummm…And-and, what are you doing here? I thought I’ll see you at the Lighthouse later.”

Nicholas just chuckles. “Well, I know this is odd, but don’t look so surprised Blaine. I’m just a father visiting his son before he gets married. What’s wrong with that?”

“Nothing I guess…” Blaine replies giving his father a soft smile.

“Good…Because I came here to give you two things, first this…” He says as he comes closer and gives Blaine a bone crushing hug. “Not every day your son gets married.” Nicholas states excitedly.

Blaine laughs a little, but hugs his dad back. This was odd, yeah, but it was also something Blaine had always wanted, so he’s grateful for that.

“And I also came to give you this…” Nicholas continues, handing Blaine a white envelope.

Blaine takes it and opens it finding a folded check with several zeros to the right, inside of the small envelope. “What’s this?” He asks still staring at the impressive amount of money.

Nicholas frowns and replies. “Money?” Unable to hide the mockery from his voice.

Blaine laughs. “Well, yeah evidently, but what for?”

“For your honeymoon!” Nicholas replies excited.

Blaine frowns even more confused and stuttering he replies, “But-but you already paid the-the….Ummm, Vegas trip…” He trails off.

Nicholas shakes his head. “No, I didn’t. That was your mom’s gift, this is my gift to you and Kurt. Your mom told me you two have been saving money for this trip, so save your money to put towards my future grandkids’ college and spend this on your trip…”

Blaine smiles and gasps shocked. The word _‘grandkids’_ still echoing through his mind. He can’t believe that precisely _that_ word came out of from his dad’s mouth. “Ummm…Thanks…We really appreciate this…”

“You’re welcome son…Now let me help you rehearse those vows. Cooper texted us last night saying you were rehearsing like crazy…Maybe I can help…” Nicholas says.

“Yeah, thanks. I mean, that would be great…Thanks, dad” Blaine replies coyly. He’s still getting used to this new version of his dad. He’s not complaining, on the contrary, but he still finds it weird.

Taking a seat at the bed, the two Anderson men start to rehearse for the millionth time, Blaine’s vows as time seems to pass very slowly.

Kurt looks himself in the mirror, suddenly noticing something near his nose. Terrified, he turns around quickly and yells. “Elliott! Come! Come! I think I have a pimple in my nose!”

Elliott comes, and running over, he looks closely. “You’re crazy Kurt! There’s nothing there!”

Kurt shakes his head and pointing to the small, almost invisible red dot near his nose, he replies, “Of course there is! Look! Oh my God! This is a disaster!”

Elliott rolls his eyes and tries to calm down his friend. “Don’t worry Kurt, I’m sure Blaine is going to marry you, pimple or not…But in this case, there’s nothing there…Relax, okay?”

Kurt takes a deep breath and looks again at the reflection in front of him. “How can you not see it? It’s as big as a mountain!” He flails his arms in front of his face, still freaking out about the invisible _‘giant’_ pimple he swears he has.

Elliott chuckles a little, “Kurt! Breathe! Everything’s going to be fine!”

Kurt sighs while slowly nodding his head because he knows he’s starting to freak out and trying to forget about the pimple disaster, he changes the subject, “Where’s Rachel?”

“She texted me earlier so she should be here any min–” Elliot is replying when the door of the loft slides open and Rachel comes in wearing her peculiar big grin.

“Speak of the devil…” Elliott murmurs between giggles. The brunette’s timing was impeccable.

Kurt turns around and notices that not only Rachel walked in, but Santana too. Looking at his Latina friend and remembering the small joke he has about her, he whispers to Elliott. “Literally…”

Kurt stands up to hug the two girls when suddenly Mercedes appears too. Confused, Kurt looks back and forth between all his friends. Santana being her usual self, just says, “I have no idea why you dragged us here this early Lady-Hummel-soon-to-be-Anderson. I cannot fathom a reason as to why it would take you almost six hours to get ready when you have no hair. But then again, maybe it takes six hours to polish that shiny porcelain mask you have over your, what I presume, is your real hideous face.”

Kurt lets out a tiny laugh as their friends make themselves comfortable in the small loft. The girls take a seat and immediately ask Kurt about the plan for the day. Elliott interferes and explains that Kurt wants some kind of facials and that stuff to look radiant at his wedding. The three girls immediately nod and along with Elliott they start to prepare some face masks to help their friend while Kurt takes a long and warm hot shower.

After an hour or so, the group is all over Kurt, helping him to be spectacular for the upcoming event. Santana is cleaning Kurt’s face and removing some residues of the last mask with a wet towel when Mercedes asks, “And…Are you nervous?”

Kurt nods and Santana let’s out a _‘Stop moving!’_ while Kurt quickly apologizes and replies to Mercedes, “Yeah I’m nervous…though I’m excited too and happy. But also a part of me is kind of afraid you know? I don’t know what to expect. I just hope that our lives don’t change that much after we’re married. I love the way we are right now so I don’t want it to change…”

Rachel smiles and says, “It won’t Kurt, don’t worry. You two have been practically married since high school, there’s nothing to worry about…marriage is not that big of a change…”

Santana pipes in and says, “Oh-uh Berry! Marriage is a big, big change…”

“In this case is not…” Rachel replies.

“In any case it is Berry…and let me give you a little marriage advice Lance Bass. There are four rules to a successful marriage. One, never yell at each other unless the house is on fire. Two, never go to bed mad, instead stay up and fight all night and if you have to fight, well…do it naked. Three, compromise is key lady-lips, my wife and I always compromise. I admit I am wrong and she agrees with me, and last but not least…sex, lots and lots of sex. Words of advice…don’t stop having sex! If you don’t do that, then I’m sorry but yeah, your marriage is going to fail”

“Oh my God Santana! You don’t know what you’re talking about! And can’t you be nice for one day?” Rachel says.

Santana, with a serious face and a monotone voice, just replies, “No I can’t hobbit. I tried once and I felt constipated for a week! And…Dah! Of course I know what I’m talking about! I’ve been married for 2 and a half months!”

Staring at the two girls now bickering, with wide eyes Kurt yells, “Stop! Okay? You’re freaking me out even more! Just shut up and  help me!”

“Yeah girls, stop fighting…let’s help the groom here…” Mercedes says.

Santana and Rachel agree for some minutes, but eventually they start to tease at each other. Kurt, tired of the silly fights, picks up his phone and calls Wes. Once the T.V actor answers Kurt immediately says, “Hi Wes, it’s Kurt! Ummm Is Brittany near you?” He asks.

 _“Yeah, she’s sitting next to me…Why?”_ Wes replies confused.

Kurt sighs in relief. “Thank god, you two need to come get your women! They are driving me insane, and if they don’t leave or get it together soon I’m going to lose my mind!”

 _“Okay, don’t worry…we’re on our way…we’ll be there in 10 minutes tops!”_ Wesley replies as Kurt cuts off the conversation.

“Seriously?” Santana asks a bit offended.

Kurt just nods and closes his eyes as Mercedes starts to put on some new facial on his face.

After exactly 10 minutes, Wes and Brittany come get Rachel and Santana and as they are being dragged out, the two girls keep arguing with one another.

“This is all your fault Santana, because you can’t be nice for one single day! You’re just–” Rachel is saying when the doors of the loft slide open and Burt appears at the threshold looking at the two couples with a curious look.

“Burt…” Rachel whispers.

“Girls…gentleman…” Burt says greeting them.

“Nice to meet you sir…ummm…we were leaving, but please come in…” Wesley says as they all make their way out of the apartment and Burt steps in.

Once in the room, Burt sees his son standing in the middle of the room with Mercedes by his side. Kurt looks at his dad through the mirror and asks, “Dad?”

“Hi kiddo!” Burt replies with a huge grin on his face.

Kurt smiles at him and stands up to hug him. Elliott emerges from the room, where he was setting Kurt’s suit, and both him and Mercedes excuse themselves and leave the two men alone.

Once they are by themselves, Burt asks, “How are you?”

“Honestly?” Kurt asks back sarcastically.

Burt just nods. “Terrified, nervous and oddly…extremely happy too.”

Burt laughs. “Something similar happened to me when I married your mom. But why don’t we sit for a while? Let’s talk so you can relax a little.”

Kurt nods and takes a seat next to his dad. Burt rests his arms onto his lap and taking a deep breath he says, “I want to tell you so many things and I don’t even know where to start. So forgive me if what I’m about to say doesn’t make any sense at some point, but I just want to give you the latest advice before you embark on this new adventure.”

Kurt smiles warmly at the man in front of him and Burt continues, “It seems like yesterday when you were trying to teach me how to grab a cup of tea properly, like _‘royalty’_ you used to say. Yet, here we are, on the eve of your wedding and I still forget to lift my little finger every now and then.”

Kurt laughs and tries to control his emotions. He knows his dad is about to give him a very touchy and probably teary speech. Following Kurt’s silence, Burt continues. “I know what you’re thinking Kurt, and don’t worry. I won’t give you the emotional speech. I just want you to know a few things that might be useful for your future life…”

Kurt smiles again and looking at his dad’s eyes he nods, letting the old man know that he can go on with whatever he wants to tell him. Burt clears his throat and speaks up, “First, marriage is not easy son. There will be ups and downs, sometimes more downs than ups, but what makes a marriage something worthwhile is not how many ups or downs you two may have, but how you choose to deal with them. I know you two have experienced situations that have made you stronger as a couple and as human beings. So when you hesitate, even a little, if the decision to marry Blaine was the right thing to do, remember all you two have lived and you’ll realize that whatever problems you two are going through at the time, should not be as bad as you might think they are…” Burt says.

“Thanks dad…” Kurt replies.

“I haven’t finished Kurt…What you two have is something that not many people find in a lifetime, so treasure it son. Treasure your husband, your future family and always be proud of them. I know Blaine is the one, he makes you happy and you make him happy too. Try to look out for each other, but most importantly love each other deeply. Love him no matter what Kurt. Life’s not easy son, so make that commitment now. He is not perfect. You are not perfect. No one is perfect. You must accept him for who he is. Everyone makes mistakes, everyone does things without thinking about the consequences. Love him no matter what happens. Love him unconditionally, and I promise you that you’ll have a lifetime of happiness.” Burt says as he takes a moment to let the words sink into Kurt’s head.

“Remember that the key to a great relationship is communication Kurt. Develop those skills and don’t be afraid to talk to him about everything and anything. As close as you two are, as well as you say you know each other, you are still two people with two different minds, two different backgrounds, and with two different personalities. Talk about everything. Learn to express how you feel, your emotions need to be shared Kurt just like your opinions and ideas. In fact, share everything, don’t hold anything back. Listen to everything he says. Do not interrupt and allow him to tell you everything he wants to tell you. Perhaps it will hurt your feelings, but you must listen to him to be able to work out any issues. Keep your ears open, listen to him, be open minded and care enough to want to listen to him no matter what he has to say. If it is important to him, it should be important to you. Care, care enough to listen well. Never let anger come between you. Don’t do anything out of anger Kurt. In fact, don’t react from anger, don’t discuss issues or make decisions while angry. Things happen, people do things, accept that. Anger is a stupid, explosive emotion. Nothing good comes from anger, it’s an unproductive emotion. Instead try to remain calm, take some deep breaths, tell yourself nothing is worth the energy anger would take and when calm, talk, listen, discuss, and try to work out a solution…”

“I will…” Kurt replies confident. What his father is sharing with him are valuables advices and he is planning on following them no matter what.

“Those are the things that are the most important Kurt. If you love him no matter what, accept him for who he is, if you talk to him about everything, if you listen to him with an open mind, if you remain calm at all times, there is nothing in life that you cannot work out together. Nothing will be able to tear you two apart. As your father, I only want you to be happy. So be happy Kurt and enjoy this day. I know you’re nervous, excited and probably worried about the whole schedule, but don’t worry about that okay? Instead, allow yourself to laugh, to cry and to smile. Enjoy your friends and family, and just be who you are, okay?”

Kurt nods. Burt smiles and looking into his son’s blue eyes, those eyes that remind him so much about his late wife, he says, “One last thing…I brought you this. This is one of my gifts…the other one is a new coffee machine, because the one you have sucks.” Burt adds and Kurt laughs.

“What’s this?” The blue-eyed man asks taking the small rectangular box his father is handing him. “Something important, but don’t open it right now. It’s for both of you, so open it when you’re together.” He adds.

“Okay…” Kurt replies placing the box on top of one of the tables.

“Don’t forget I love you okay?” Burt adds suddenly grabbing his son’s hands.

Kurt nods again trying to fight back the tears. Burt hugs him tightly and whispers, “Thank you for letting me be your father, I’m so proud of you…” Kurt sobs slightly murmuring a simple, “I love you Dad” As some tears finally roll down his face.

Blaine, along with Sam, Tina and Cooper make their way inside the Lighthouse at the Chelsea pier. Looking around and taking in their surroundings the four of them immediately gasp surprised.

“Oh my gosh!” Tina squeals. “This place is beautiful!”

The three men standing behind her nod in agreement as they continue to look around and absorb their surroundings. It’s early so the sun still lingers above the horizon, but they all know that when the ceremony finally takes place the view they are going to have of the Hudson river is going to be breathtakingly beautiful with the New York night’s lights sparking in the background.

“I’ll go check that everything is ready, okay?” Tina announces immediately jumping into her maid of honor responsible self and walking away.

The three man look at each other and walk near the room where the ceremony is going to take place. Leaning against a wall they all slip into conversation easily just to kill time.

“I’m glad you’re getting married” Sam suddenly says. Blaine smiles to his friend and just when he’s about to reply, the blonde man continues, “It would never have worked between us, you know, we could only be just friends…” Sam flashes him an apologetic smile.

Once again, Blaine opens his mouth with a shake of his head to respond but is quickly interrupted for the second time, but now by his loud mouth brother. Cooper overhearing the conversation pipes in and asks surprised, “Wait! What? Between you two?”

Sam smirks and ignoring Blaine’s pleading eyes, he pushes Blaine with the side of his shoulder and says, “Yeah, your little bro here totally had a crush on me.”

The taller brunette man burst into laughter and after a whole minute of just hysterics, the blue-eyed actor looks at his brother and asks, “You had a crush on your best friend?”

Sam nods frantically and answers before Blaine can even think of an answer. “Yeah he totally wanted to do me.” He speaks, maintaining a straight face.

Blaine blushes and before his friend can embarrass him even more in front of his brother he confesses. “Okay, first that crush was just a phase! Second, Kurt was dating this New York guy and I was alone and third, let’s face it! From all the glee guys you were the only one remotely attractive…In all honesty it’s just those lips nothing else.”

The blonde starts to laugh uncontrollably and Cooper immediately joins him, both gripping at their stomachs as their muscles clenched from laughing so hard. Blaine rolls his eyes biting his lips, trying to prevent the laughter that’s threatening to come out. Cooper takes a few deep breaths trying to settle his reddening face. Turning to look at Sam he smirks, “Well you do have some good lips…” With that Blaine can no longer hold it in. His eyes shift quickly between his brother and best friend before he burst into laugh along with them.

After five minutes, the laughter suddenly dissipates and Cooper taking a new deep breath, says, “Okay, okay, but  in all seriousness how are you feeling squirt?”

Blaine smiles. “Excited, nervous, a bit afraid, in love, about to explode and extremely happy!” Sam laughs because he can’t understand how his friend can feel all that and still be smiling like a fool.

“I’m glad to hear that little bro…You know? Maybe I’m not the right person to give you this advice, after all I’m not married….Yet. But I do know that happiness is the key to a successful marriage. I don’t want to scare you or anything, but remember that you’re about to start this new life full of responsibilities and commitments. I know you love Kurt, so that won’t be a problem, but don’t forget that from this day on you two will start to walk this path together. Make sure he feels safe, so you can feel safe too. Make sure he feels loved, so you can feel loved too and remember that no matter how black the horizon is, you two will always have each other to light up the way.” Cooper says, using all his wisdom.

Blaine’s eyes soften as he wonders for a split second how his brother came up with such good advice in the first place. Quickly brushing it off he smiles at his brother and giving him a soft pat on the back he says, “Awww, thanks Coop.”

“I’m serious…” Cooper complains looking at Blaine in the eyes to convey his seriousness.

“I know…” Blaine shrugs.

Cooper frowns. “You do? How?”

“Because you’re not pointing…or yelling.” Blaine replies matter of factly.

Cooper laughs and unable to contain his excitement he hugs his little brother and whispers, “I’m so happy for you!”

At a private room inside the Lighthouse, Kurt waits for his cue to walk down the aisle. He asked Elliott, Rachel and everyone else to go ahead and take their seats giving him time alone to take the deep breathes he needed to calm his nerves and rehearse his vows in his head for the millionth time.

After 10 long minutes, he’s still pacing around the small room wringing his wrist nervously and trying to ease his breathing.

“Relax Kurt, everything is going to be fine…Just relax!” He repeats to himself, over and over again.

Feeling extremely nervous and a little dizzy, Kurt walks towards the small table, grabbing a glass of water and taking a small sip. “Just relax…” He repeats to himself once again.

It isn’t the getting married part that’s got him so nervous, well a part of it is. After all he is about to start the rest of his life and that is a pretty big deal. But what makes him feel even more nervous was the fact that he has been planning this day for a very long time and now that finally the day has come, he just wants everything to be perfect and nothing to go wrong.

“Remember what your dad said Kurt…Don’t worry about anything and just enjoy the day. This is your day.” He tells to himself, but the nerves and stress of wanting the day to go smoothly are starting to get to him as he stands there waiting for his father to let him know it’s time to walk down the aisle.

He takes some deep breaths willing himself to not get sick. “Just think about Blaine…Think about him and everything is going to be fine…”

In another room on the other side of the hall awaits an excited and eager Blaine. He walks anxiously around the room unable to remain still as he also waits for his cue to walk down the aisle.

He stretches his neck from side to side trying to work out his nerves. Blaine can’t help but get anxious when remembering some of the jokes his big brother told him before leaving him alone. _‘He wouldn’t dare to leave me standing here right?’_ He questions himself as he slowly shakes his head trying to get rid of those awful thoughts.

A few minutes past by and the second hand on the ticking clock next to him is starting to look like it’s slowing down. Blaine lets out a shaky breath right as he hears a soft knock on the door and Nicholas, Blaine’s dad, sticks his head through the door and with a soft smile he says, “It’s time…are you ready son?”

Blaine nods with a smile so wide it bunches his cheeks. He practically runs out the room eager to get down the aisle and marry the love of his life.

As they had previously accorded, both Blaine and Kurt would be walking down the aisle with their respective dads. So Blaine, grabbing his dad’s arm and linking them at the elbow, starts to walk to the entrance of the place.

Blaine and Nicholas gasp a bit surprised when they stand at the beginning of the aisle. The room looks beyond beautiful. Blaine knew the place would definitely look amazing when the ceremony started. After all Kurt had specifically chosen the time to make it _‘spectacular’_ , but this was more than that, this was like a scene taken from a movie. Literally. Now Blaine knew why Kurt had chosen this place at this hour.

The room is finely and simple decorated with white petals flanking both sides of the aisle, and small candles illuminating all the way. The rest of the decoration is the breathtakingly view that the Lighthouse offers. A completely natural velvet canvas of the most beautiful sunset over the Hudson river that only New York city can offer.

“Oh my God…” Blaine whispers as he takes a deep breath just when the soft and melodic voice of one Mercedes Jones starts to echo through the small room. Opening the doors, the two men make their way inside.

_(Mercedes speaking) I do swear that I’ll always be there. I’d give anything and everything and I will always care. Through weakness and strength, happiness and sorrow, for better for worse, I will love you with…every beat of my heart…_

Cooper and Tina walk in first and as the first notes of the song start, Blaine’s body starts to shake with anticipation. _‘This is it!’_ He thinks to himself. Slightly looking up, he notices that all his family and friends are already standing there and looking at him with big and sincere smiles across their faces.

“Just breath and follow me son.” Nicholas murmurs, when he notices Blaine’s nervousness. Blaine nods and as Mercedes enchants every single person in the room with her angelical voice, Blaine starts to walk following the beat of the song.

_(Mercedes)…From this moment life has begun, from this moment you are the one. Right beside you is where I belong. From this moment on…_

Blaine tries to control his emotions and keep them at bay as he very slowly walks down the aisle. This is the happiest day of his life and he doesn’t want to ruin it with some emotional break down. But as much as he tries, the overwhelming feeling of finally marrying the love of his life takes over him and small tears start to roll down his face.

_(Mercedes)…From this moment I have been blessed. I live only for your happiness. And for your love I’d give my last breath. From this moment on…_

Blaine smiles and looks to both sides of the aisle. Meeting the eyes of some of his Dalton friends, his McKinley friends and teachers, some students and teachers from NYADA, some relatives he haven’t seen in years and finally Carole and his mom. Smiling broadly, the soon to be married man, whispers a sweet _‘I love you’_ to his mom, who for some reason can’t stop crying as she looks her baby boy walking down the aisle.

“Are you okay?” Nicholas whispers.

Blaine just nods as they both continue their way down the small, but oddly longest aisle they have ever walked.

_(Mercedes)…I give my hand to you with all my heart. Can’t wait to live my life with you, can’t wait to start. You and I will never be apart, my dreams came true because of you…_

Blaine and Nicholas reach the altar and both men stand in their position on the right side, next to Cooper and Tina, waiting for Kurt to join them. Blaine adjusts his Michael Kors trim fit wool tuxedo and checks that the small rose boutonniere is in its place.

_(Mercedes)…From this moment as long as I live. I will love you, I promise you this. There is nothing I wouldn’t give. From this moment on…._

The doors of the place swing open and Blaine immediately looks up excited to see the love of his life. Rachel and Elliott walk down the aisle wearing big smiles and take their respective places on the left side. Blaine takes a deep breath without even blinking as he waits for Kurt to enter the room. Just when the music interlude of the song ends two shadows appear at the end of the room. And Blaine’s smile go wider.

_(Mercedes)….You’re the reason I believe in love and you’re the answer to my prayers from up above. All we need is just the two of us, my dreams came true because of you_

His soon to be husband is wearing a charcoal grey Giorgio Armani tux with some peculiar touches that can only be the creation of one Kurt Hummel. Blaine smiles and unable to keep his eyes away from that elegant and gorgeous man, he watches as his love starts to slowly walk down the aisle along with Burt.

Kurt takes a deep breath and looks up, the moment he meets his future husband’s eyes, the rest of the world disappears. All the worries, doubts, stress and problems are now long forgotten. This is the moment he had been waiting for and so, he is going to enjoy it until it hurts. Giving him a sweet smile, Kurt tries to rush his way down the never ending aisle, but Burt stops him and makes him slow down causing the entire room to let out a soft giggle.

_(Mercedes) From… this…. moment as long as I live. I will love you, I promise you this. There is nothing I wouldn’t give. From this moment…I will love you as long as I live…From this moment on…_

Kurt and Burt reach the altar and Burt, following the tradition, hands over his son to Blaine and exchanges a quick and polite, handshake with Nicholas.

Blaine takes Kurt’s hand and squeezes it tightly as he gives the man in front of him the most beautiful and charming smile ever. Kurt smiles back and just when Blaine is about to speak, Kurt whispers, “I love you.”

“I love you too.” Blaine replies as the song comes to an end.

Once everyone is seated, Kurt and Blaine, still holding hands, move a step forward and take their respective places. The officiant clears his throat and with a serene voice, he begins the ceremony. “Welcome everyone…” He says greeting all the guests.

“Kurt…Blaine…Today you two are here surrounded by your friends and family, all of whom have gathered to witness your marriage and to share with you the joy of this special occasion. Today, as you join yourselves in marriage, there is a vast and unknown future stretching out before you. Today you entered here as individuals, but you will leave as husbands, blending your lives, expanding your family ties, and embarking upon the grandest adventure of human interaction. The story of your lives together is still yours to write, so make sure that through your commitment to each other, you can grow and nurture a love that makes both of you better people, a love that continues to give you great joy, and also a passion for living that provides you with energy and patience to face the responsibilities of life.”

Blaine and Kurt side glance at each other, sharing excited smiles while the officiant continues. “As you requested, now you can share your vows. Kurt…”

Kurt nods and clears his throat trying to find his voice. “Blaine…we’ve been together for a long time and now that I think about it, it feels like a lifetime…5 years ago, in this same month I had the opportunity to meet you. And if you’d asked the younger version of me, if he ever imagined that the man who sang and offered to help him was going to become his husband, then he would have probably laughed at you. Because even in my craziest dreams I never imagined that one day I’ll be able to be in front of you repeating this words that are just the beginning of our lives together.” Kurt says and some tears starts to roll down Blaine’s face.

“Today I want to tell you in front of all our friends and families, how much I love you. You are the love of my life and there is no emotion that can describe what I’m feeling right now. If my heart could talk he certainly would be giving a better speech, but he can’t so all I can say is _I love you_. I love you now and forever. I can’t imagine my life without you. I can’t imagine a single day without you by my side. So today I’m not going to ask you to make any promises, and I won’t make any either. I’m just going to say that I love you, that I will always love you, and that you are the only person I’ll ever love this much.” Kurt finishes his vows.

Blaine whispers a sweet _‘I love you’_ as he wipes the tears that keep rolling down his face. He knows he must look ridiculous, but he doesn’t care. He’s extremely happy and he’s done with trying to keep his emotions at bay.

“Blaine, now it’s your turn…” The officiant says.

Blaine nods and looking into bright blue eyes, he starts, “Kurt, my one true love…my better half. When I met you, I had no idea how much my life was about to change, but then, how could I have known? A love like ours happens once in a lifetime. I know I met you for a reason, I like to think that in a way you were sent to me. Before I met you I thought that the man of my dreams, the one who was everything I had ever hoped for, only existed in my imagination. But then you came into my life and I realized that what I had always thought was happiness couldn’t compare to the joy you brought me. You are a part of everything I think and do and feel, and with you by my side, I believe that everything is possible. Because of you, I laugh, smile and dare to dream as far as my imagination allows me.”

Kurt smiles sweetly and tries to keep his emotions at bay. He doesn’t want to cry, no. He wants to jump into this man’s arms and kiss him until their lips hurt, but he knows that probably the people gather there today won’t approve that kind of behavior.

“Kut you are, and always will be, the love of my life. And today, even though you asked me not to, I want to promise you that I will love you without reservation, I will cherish you and be by your side no matter what. I will support you and comfort you through life’s joys and sorrows. I will encourage you, inspire you and be the man you deserve to have by your side. I love you…” Blaine finishes his vows.

“Now…” The officiant continues, “Do you Kurt Hummel take Blaine Anderson to be your husband, to have and to hold from this day forward, equal in love, for better or for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and to cherish; from this day forward and as long as you both shall live?”

Kurt smiles and nods excited. “I do!”

The officiant continues and asks the same question to Blaine. The hazel-eyed man smiles broadly and with a very broken voice he says, “I do!”

The officiant ask for the rings and Cooper takes a step forward and hands the pair of white golden rings. The officiant continues, “Kurt, repeat after me…I, Kurt Hummel, give you Blaine Anderson this ring as an eternal symbol of my love and commitment to you with the promise to be with you, for as long as I live.”

Kurt repeats the words as he places the ring on Blaine’s finger. The officiant asks Blaine to do the same and Blaine, after repeating the words, places the other ring on Kurt’s finger.

The officiant clears his throat and looking at the happy couple, he declares, “And now, by the power vested in me by the State of New York, I hereby pronounce you husband and husband. You may kiss now.”

Kurt and Blaine smile at each other, and eager to finally kiss as husbands, the two boys lean over and as they melt into a sweet kiss, all his friends and family stand up and start to clap loudly. Cheering the newlyweds.

The officiant clears his throat to get the attention of the people gather in the room. “Family and Friends, then I present to you Mr. and Mr. Anderson-Hummel”

Kurt and Blaine lace their fingers together and raise their laced hands showing their families and friends that now it’s official. From now on they are one. They finally tied the knot.

Everyone claps and cheers as the boys walk hand in hand down the aisle. Pamela and Carole are crying and hugging each other, while Burt and Nicholas are looking at their sons with proud smiles.

A large group of people starts to gather at the Plaza Hotel lobby. A lady in her late twenties, starts to guide them through some doors until they reach a huge ballroom where the reception of Kurt and Blaine’s wedding is taking place.

“At the back of the invitation you can find your assigned tables, but either way, here’s a small map so you can find your tables easier.” She says to the guests as she points to a tall board where a table setting floor plan is displayed.

The group just nods as they enter the place. Quinn slips her arm through her boyfriend’s arm linking them at the elbow before pointing to the table with the number 4 in it. “That’s our table babe…”

Puck and Quinn make their way to their assigned table where Tina, Shane, Will and Emma are already taking their seats. “Hello everybody!” Puck exclaims, patting Shane’s shoulder before pulling out Quinn’s chair for her and helping her scoot in closer to the table.

“It’s so nice to see you guys, you both look great!” Will speaks up with a proud smile to his former students.

“It’s glad to see you too Mr. Schue…” Quinn replies with her usual proper mannered self.

The group quickly eases into softly talking, enjoying the time they have to catch up with their respective lives. After all it’s been awhile since they have had the chance to get together.

Puck leans over and whispers into Quinn’s ear, “Do you think this will be us one day?”

Quinn looks back to her boyfriend with a soft smile. “I hope so…”

Puck smiles widely. “I love you and as soon as I am able to be in the same place with you, living and not always so far away, I promise you Quinn Fabray that I will make you my wife.” He says with a tone in his voice that leaves no room for doubts.

Opening her mouth to speak, but immediately closing when nothing comes out. Quinn chokes on her emotions, so instead of saying something she just leans over and gives Puck a chaste kiss

“I love weddings!” Tina chirps, noticing the romantic exchange happening next to her. “Everyone is always so happy and all the couples are all cuddly!” She adds, leaning closer to her boyfriend who has only been home from his last trip to Baghdad for a little over a week.

Shane puts his arm around her and kisses her temple. “I can’t wait till we become a family babe…”

Tina smiles and gives her boyfriend a sweet kiss on the cheek. Quinn, overhearing the conversation, asks, “Speaking of becoming a family…Where’s baby Daniel Mr. Schue? I was hoping we get to see him tonight…”

“He’s at my parents’ house, we figured there would be a lot going on tonight so it was best for him to stay home.” Will explains.

Emma smiles her dainty smile, “Besides with the music and everything it would be too loud and you know how the kids react to that…Who want’s a screaming baby to interrupt a celebration?” She says pausing for a minute because in that precise moment a new couple arrives to the place.

Sam and Mercedes, dressed in their best clothes enter the place holding each others hands. Emma, who didn’t know the recent news, immediately asks, “So are they officially together now? Because the rumor around McKinley is that in Vegas they hooked up and now Mercedes is pregnant so Sam feels like he should give them a shot now.” Emma shares with the rest of the table.

Quinn’s face scrunches, with her eyebrows creased together and her lips tugged into a disgusted frown, “Wow people are so cruel! I see McKinley hasn’t changed much since the last time I was there…As for the rumor, yes they are officially together, but _no_ , Mercedes is not pregnant!”

“They look so happy together!” Tina squeals smiling at the couple.

“I know!” Quinn agrees, “I’m glad they are finally together, they are good for each other…”

“As one Mercedes Jones would say…Preach!” Puck pipes in, causing the rest of the table to burst into laughter.

Sam and Mercedes reach their seats at the table with the number 3 labeled card. They take their seats next to Rachel, Wesley, Artie, Madison, Brittany and Santana who were already seated there. After saying their hello’s to everyone, the happy couple sits down too and falls into the small conversation taking place at the table.

“So when did you guys officially got back together?” Rachel asks.

“A little after Vegas…” Mercedes replies.

“I’m so happy for you both! You look so happy and in love!” Rachel exclaims.

“Thanks Rache…and we are, we really are, right Sam?” The soul diva asks her boyfriend. But the blonde man is distracted and not really paying attention to what his friends and girlfriend are saying.

He’s looking around and getting lost with the beautiful decoration. The chandeliers lighting bounces off the marble flooring. The flicker of the candles neatly placed on top of each table flicking and dancing across the cloth that drapes over the table. The amazing architecture trimming the sides of the tall high ceilings and continuing onto the high arches and pillars lining the walls. Every corner of the place had something wonderful to look at.

“Sorry! What were you saying?” Sam asks Mercedes.

“Rachel was saying that we look happy and in love, I was just saying that we are…that’s all.” Mercedes says.

“Oh! Yeah! Of course we are! We are very happy and in love Rachel!” Sam replies smiling at the brunette.

“I’m glad, I mean we all are glad to see you guys together! You deserved your happy ending too!” Rachel says.

“And speaking about happy endings…” Madison chirps in, “How was your honeymoon girls!?” She asks Brittany and Santana.

The girls immediately start to describe all the details about their honeymoon and Sam takes the opportunity to rest his head on his girlfriend’s shoulder and ask. “What do you think our wedding is going to look like?”

Mercedes freezes. This is the first time that Sam is actually talking so openly about their future, about marriage. “Honestly? I don’t care as long as you’re there…”

Sam raises his head and gives his love a big lopsided cheesy grin before exclaiming, “Of course I’ll be there! I’ll be the groom in case you miss me!”

Mercedes smiles back and just when she’s about to reply, Rachel unknowingly of what was going on between her friends, interrupts their little moment by asking, “Does anyone know where the grooms are anyways? This is their party and their not even here yet.”

Sam shrugs his shoulders and Mercedes rolls her eyes. Santana pipes in and says, “Oh I overheard Tina saying they were going to take official family pics at the Brooklyn Bridge.”

“They are going to freeze!” Rachel exclaims thinking about the cold weather that was starting to hit the city.

“Yeah, I told Kurt and Blaine to go somewhere else, but you know them…” Artie adds.

The group falls into easy conversation for some more minutes. Brittany, holding hands and leaning into her wife, looks around the table and sees Rachel cuddled up with Wesley and Sam with his arm around Mercedes, and a now brunette Madison sitting in Artie’s lap. Confused Brittany says with a pout, “Artie what happened to Madison? I really liked her!”

Madison looks up toward Brittany matching her confused expression and says, “It’s me Britt?”

Brittany smiles confused and says, “No, Madison was blonde you’re not blonde…”

“I just dyed my hair.” The now brunette replies smiling.

“Oh!” Brittany exclaims finally recognizing the British girl. “I’m glad you’re still Artie’s girlfriend ‘cause I really like you! But tell me, how you got together? How you two met? You haven’t shared that story yet…”

Madison frowns again. “Yes we did Britt at Kurt’s birthday party, remember?”

Brittany shakes her head, she doesn’t remember that part. Madison, noticing the confusion on her friend’s face quickly explains, “Don’t worry I will tell you the whole story again, I auditioned for his movie and I got the part and I don’t know why, but we had a connection since day one. Then he asked me out and I said yes, we went to a couple of dates and one day he just asked me if I wanted to be his girlfriend and I said yes.” Madison says with her very British English accent.

“I know you tried to say something, but I didn’t understand a word. I only speak English and a bit of Spanish thanks to my wife…” She then turns and looking at Artie she asks again, “So Artie…then how did you to meet?” Causing the entire table to laugh out loud.

Elliott strides into the reception’s venue with Isabelle and Dani on each arm. Weaving through the number of tables set up on the side of the dance large dance floor, the three make their way to their assigned table. Out of the corner of his eye, Elliott spots Rachel. Making a quick detour Elliott softly tugs on the two ladies arms and pulls them towards the table where Rachel and Wesley are catching up with the others at their table.

A mixture of voices roar around the full table. Elliott, Dani and Isabelle look at each other and laugh a little. There’s a lot of people around those few tables and they don’t even have to ask why, the answer is simple, the Glee kids.

Standing behind a lady in a red dress, who they don’t recognize at first sight, the trio starts to wave and say hello to the faces they know. Elliott and Isabelle, immediately travel around the table giving hugs and kisses to all the groom’s friends, while Dani just stands there waving and scanning the room.

Dani’s eyes travel around the table until her eyes come back around to the person sitting in front of her. The lady in the red dress, who has her back to her, is no other than Santana. Dani immediately recognizes the caramel skin and the flow of dark brown hair. “Hey, Santana.” She says flirtatiously as she runs her hand along the top of her back.

Tearing her attention away from the conversation between Brittany, Artie and Madison, the Latina looks up and sees the blue haired girl standing behind her. “Oh sweet Jesus..” Santana shifts in her seat. The last time she talked to Dani was when she broke up with her.

Looking up from his crouched position next to Rachel, Elliott looks over to Santana and Dani. Sensing the awkwardness and fearing this conversation could be head towards anywhere good, the dark haired man stands up quickly, dusting off his pants. “Oh, what? Someone needs me” He tries. “Yeah, be right there.” Yelling out to thin air. Making a quick escape and trying to get away since he had somehow forgotten to tell Dani that Santana had gotten married.

 Looking up from her and Santana’s laced fingers that lie on top of decorated table, Brittany spots the blue haired woman with her hand resting on Santana’s shoulder. Her eyes shift between her wife and the other woman, confusion evident on her face.

Santana can see the wheels turning in Brittany’s mind so she quickly speaks up, “Oh, right. I’m sorry you two haven’t actually met.” She grips Brittany’s hand a little tighter, running her thumb over her wife’s knuckles. “Britt, this is Dani. Dani this is Brittany, my wife.”

As soon as the word _‘wife’_ slips from Santana’s plump lips Dani’s polite smile quickly fades. “Wife..?” She trails off while looking down to her ex and her new wife’s hands threaded together, taking notice of their shiny wedding rings.

An awkward silence fills the air as the eyes of the members sitting around the table shift between Brittany, Santana and Dani.

Slowly standing from her seated position, Brittany reaches a hand out in Dani’s direction. “Oh you’re Dani! It’s nice to finally meet you!” She says enthusiastically with a genuine smile.

“Yeah…Ummm…I-I gotta go.” Dani stutters quickly before turning on her heels and walking away.

Brittany’s lips tug into a frown. Confused, she lets her eyes flicker down to Santana and with worried eyes, she asks, “Did I do something?”

Santana gives her wife a reassuring smile. Reaching out and running her hand along Brittany’s forearm she says, “No baby not at all” Kissing her cheek.

As people continue to enter the place the tables quickly start to fill with all the guests. However there’s a table, near the bar that’s still empty.

“I wonder who’s going to be at that table…” Artie asks randomly at the people seated at his table.

Madison, Rachel, Wesley, Brittany and Santana look at the table Artie just mentioned and shrug.

Rachel turns around and taps on Tina’s shoulder. The Asian girl who was at the next table turns around and Rachel immediately asks, “Do you happen to know who will be seating at that table?” She says pointing to the table with the number 6 labeled on a white card.

Tina nods and instead of replying she points to the group who’s making a big entrance and drawing the attention of all the guests.

“Who are they?” Brittany asks.

“The Warblers!” Rachel exclaims recognizing some of them.

Sam who was seated next to Tina joins the small conversation going between the tables. “If they are the warblers, why aren’t they wearing their blazers?” He asks genuinely confused.

“Maybe because they got new uniforms?” Brittany suggests looking at the group with the same hint of confusion that was on Sam’s face.

“Yeah, that’s probably why…” Sam agrees.

“Well, I hope so…” Brittany continues, “Because I like this look better than the other one.”

“They all look so handsome.” Quinn pipes in.

The rest of the ladies agree as they contemplate the group of boys making their way to their table. Some of them are walking hand in hand with their respective dates and Puck unable to contain his thought to himself whispers into his girlfriend’s ear, “I thought you had to be gay to be a warbler?” still looking intently at one of the warblers and his girlfriend.

“Puck…” Quinn whispers

In that moment Mike arrives to the the table distracting them from the warblers. He’s smiling broadly as he introduces Naomi, his girlfriend, to the rest of the group. “Guys at the ceremony I didn’t have the chance to introduce you to Naomi…Babe, these are my friends…Guys this is Naomi my girlfriend!”

“Nice to meet you…” Tina immediately adds standing up and hugging Naomi. Finally Mike and her were in this friendship and no hard feelings stage.

The rest of the group quickly says hi to Naomi and Mike and her take their places next to Will and Emma.

“It’s so nice to see so many familiar faces!” Mike exclaims excited.

“Including mine?” A male voice says as he approaches the table.

The two tables turn around to see to whom this strangely familiar voice belongs. Sebastian is standing there next to a cute handsome guy smiling all friendly to the table.

“Sebastian…” Rachel says surprised that the Warbler has showed up at their table to say hi.

“Hi…” The former warbler smiles politely as he scans both tables. “It’s nice to see you all again, but please let me introduce you to my date, this is Declan…My boyfriend.” He adds proudly.

“Nice to meet you Declan…I hope here Horse-teeth is not throwing slushies to your face every time to two have a fight or something.” Santana adds enjoying Sebastian’s discomfort. It was clear that Sebastian didn’t like to talk about his past bully-self.

“Will you ever forgive me for that?” Sebastian asks looking intently to the Latina.

“I don’t know. I’ll have to think about it.” Santana replies, but Brittany immediately whispers a soft _‘San’_ and the Latina reluctantly turns around to face the warbler again and adds, “Fine! It’s been a while after all…You’re now officially forgiven…Happy?”

Sebastian just smiles and Sam, trying to be friendly asks, “And what’s going on with you life Sebastian? Are you studying or what?”

“Yeah I got into Harvard and I’m studying Law…” Sebastian replies “I’m working part time at my dad’s company and so far I’m doing great. Blaine told me you’re now McKinley’s Glee coach?”

“Yeah, figures right?” Sam says, not really sure of what to expect from the former warbler.

“I think that’s great! It’s important to keep the arts in the school you know? So far all of us are living proofs of what the arts can do…” Sebastian adds.

They all look at him like if he was some kind of stranger. The sweet, comprehensive version of Sebastian Smythe was not one they were used to. “Anyways, it was nice seeing you all again, I guess we’ll have some time to catch up later, right?”

“Yeah, yeah sure…” Sam replies, noticing how all the rest keep staring at Sebastian as if they couldn’t believe he was the same guy who almost blinded Blaine.

Once Sebastian is gone, Mercedes leans over and whispers into Sam’s ear, “And your students?” She asks looking at the half empty table where the kids from McKinley were supposed to be at.

“I don’t know…they must be here any minut–” Sam’s replying when suddenly he notices Jack, Ryder and Kitty walking through the door with Marley, Unique and 5 other kids who nobody knew their names walking right behind them. “Here they are!” Sam exclaims proudly of his pupils.

Jack, Ryder, Kitty, Marley, Unique make their way to the table to say hello to everybody, the other few kids take a step back, not really knowing what else to do. Sam notices the awkwardness and says, “Guys! Come on, let me introduce you to my friends…”

One of the girls, a shy tiny but still beautiful, girl nods and smiling all friendly comes over and says, “Hi Mr. Evans!” giving her teacher a quick hug.

The rest of the table bursts into laughter with the _‘Mr. Evans’_ new way of calling Sam. It sounded so grown up that they couldn’t fathom how someone could treat Sam as a legal adult when he still made those hideous, but sometimes quite funny, impressions.

The limousine pulls over in the curb in front of the Plaza Hotel. Burt, Carole, Nicholas, Pamela, Cooper and Angela, cooper’s date, immediately climb down the car and make their way to the main entrance waiting for Kurt and Blaine to join them.

Meanwhile, inside the car, Kurt leans over and kissing his now husband, he asks, “Are you ready for the party?”

Blaine nods frantically. “Yes…I can’t wait to dance all night with you!” He adds as he leans over for another kiss.

“Same here!” Kurt exclaims as he covers his husband’s face with kisses.

“Squirts! Could you please hurry up and stop the cuddling?” Cooper pokes through the door.

“Squirts? Am I a squirt too now?” Kurt asks playfully.

“Of course! You married the squirt so technically that makes you Mr. Squirt so yeah…you both are, but please hurry up, we can’t enter the party without you!” Cooper adds rubbing his hands against his upper arms for warmth.

Kurt and Blaine climb down the limo and along with their family, they enter the place and make their way into the ballroom, where their reception is taking place.

As soon as the eight people cross the front door, they are received with an overwhelming standing ovation. Kurt and Blaine look at each other and smile widely unable to hide their happiness as they greet their guests from afar.

The now Anderson-Hummel family reaches the head table and Kurt and Blaine immediately go to take their seats at the center of the big table. Burt and Carole freeze on their spots and start to count the chairs, noticing that there are 2 extra chairs. They are eight, and the head table has ten empty seats, four for Blaine’s family, four for Kurt’s and two in the middle for the grooms. Burt frowns and looking at his son and son in law, he asks, “Who’s going to sit with us? Who’s missing?”

Kurt shakes his head and as he sits down, he replies, “Nobody,  we’re complete…”

Burt and Carole look at each other confused and shrugging they walk to their respective seats on the right side of the table, next to Kurt. When they finally are in front of their chairs, they notice the small labels in front of each set of plates. The first two say Burt Hummel and Carole Hummel. Nothing new there, but the last two have Finn and Elizabeth’s name written in them.

“Oh my God!” Carole exclaims as some tears start to roll down her face.

Burt looks towards his sons and smiles at them as he slowly whispers a soft _‘Thank you’._ Surely being touch by the amazing gesture.

Kurt and Blaine just smile at their parents because there was nothing to thank for. This was their family, some of them were with them physically, and some of them just in their hearts. But they were still part of the brand new Anderson-Hummel family.

The reception flows smoothly and after the dinner is over, Rachel and Santana immediately take the stage and grab the couple of microphones that are already settle there.

“Testing…Testing…Can you all hear me?” Rachel asks, tapping the microphone with her hand and making sure it’s on.

The guests immediately nod, letting the brunette know that they can hear her perfectly.

“Good…Okay, then…goodnight everyone! My name is Rachel Berry, I’m Kurt’s maid of honor and for me it is a real pleasure to be here tonight. I hope you’re having a great time! This evening is very special for all of us because besides witnessing the wedding of two of our greatest friends, we have the opportunity to share a good time with all of you, family and friends.” Rachel says. “Anyways, you must be wondering why I’m here, well…I’m here to invite my two best friends, Mr. and Mr. Anderson-Hummel to come to the dance floor so they can have their first dance…”

The illumination of the ballroom suddenly changes from blue to purple, while Kurt and Blaine make their way to the center of the dance floor.

“It was an honor for us–” Rachel adds pointing to Santana who’s still standing next to her smiling at the people in front of them. “–to have been chosen by Kurt and Blaine, to perform the song for their very first dance as husbands. So without further ado this is _‘Moment like this’_ …thank you guys for sharing this beautiful moment with us. Hope you like it!” She says smiling to the couple.

Santana raises her microphone and before the music starts she says, “This is for you guys…”

Kurt and Blaine look at each other and remembering all the lessons they took with Mike, they take their respective positions as the first notes of the song start to echo through the huge place.

_(Rachel)…What if I told you it was all meant to be. Would you believe me? Would you agree? It’s almost that feeling we met before. So tell me that you don’t think I’m crazy. When I tell you love has come here and now…_

The moment the song starts Kurt and Blaine get lost into each other’s eyes. For them there’s no one else in the room, and suddenly it is as if the whole universe had stopped for a moment as they slow dance for the first time as husbands. The love emanating from each other’s bodies is overwhelming and the two boys immediately adjust their initial formal dancing position and embrace each other. Blaine resting his head on Kurt’s shoulder and Kurt doing the same, while the sweet voice of Rachel serenades them.

_(Rachel)…A moment like this, some people wait a lifetime. For a moment like this, some people search forever for that one special kiss. Oh, I can’t believe it’s happening to me…Some people wait a lifetime, for a moment like this…_

Kurt raises his head and gives his husband a quick peck on the lips. Blaine, getting lost into those beautiful and bright blue eyes, whispers. “I’m the happiest guy in the world right now…I love you so much”

“I love you too…” Kurt replies, resting his head once again on his husband’s shoulder. “and…you’re the second happiest guy in the world…because I’m the happiest guy in the world right now too.”

Blaine chuckles and kissing Kurt’s head, he rests his head and closes his eyes, letting his body and Kurt’s to move in synchrony with the music.

_(Santana)…Everything changes but beauty remains. Something so tender, I can’t explain. Well, I may be dreaming but till I awake. Can’t we make this dream last forever? And I’ll cherish all the love we share…_

“We are not dreaming, right? This is really happening…” Kurt says as Santana sings the beautiful part of the song that talks about making the dreams last forever.

“It’s not a dream, it looks like one…But it’s real…It’s our dream, our life together…” Blaine whispers back.

_(Santana)…A moment like this, some people wait a lifetime. For a moment like this, some people search forever for that one special kiss. Oh, I can’t believe it’s happening to me…Some people wait a lifetime, for a moment like this…_

The boys keep slow dancing around the stage under the prying eyes of all of their guests, who can’t help but smile at the beautiful and romantic scene displayed in front of them.

Rachel and Santana look at each other and joining their voices, they put their hearts into the song belting every note with their powerful voices.

_(Rachel and Santana)…Could this be the greatest love of all? I wanna know that you will catch me when I fall. So let me tell you this…_

Blaine shifts a little and whispers, “Kurt…”

Kurt looks up and notices that his husband is crying again. He has been doing that all night and Kurt thinks it’s the cutest thing ever.

“I want to tell you something…” Blaine says, his voice a little broken due to the emotion.

“What?” Kurt asks wiping the tears from his husband’s face.

“You’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me…I love you!” Blaine says leaning over and kissing Kurt.

“No, _you_ are the best thing that’s ever happened to me…I love you more.” Kurt replies, hugging Blaine tighter and lacing their fingers together.

_(Santana)…Some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this…(Rachel and Santana)…Some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this. Some people search forever for that one special kiss. Oh, I can’t believe it’s happening to me. Some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this…_

As all the guests keep staring at the lovely couple, Rachel and Santana hold each other’s hands and join their voices one more time, making sure to sound as perfect as possible. Though that’s not hard, because their voices seem to blend together perfectly.

_(Rachel)…Oh, like this, moment like…_

Sensing that the song is almost finishing Blaine raises his head and looking into his husband, he says, “I want to make a deal…”

“Okay…What is it?” Kurt asks playfully, looking at his husband with heart eyes.

_(Santana)…Oh, I can’t believe it’s happening to me…_

“Every year, in our anniversary we’re going to dance this same song, over and over again until we can’t dance anymore…” Blaine states.

“Okay…Deal, but only if you promise me to also play it for me…I want to hear you singing and playing this song in the big black piano that we are going to have…” Kurt adds.

“Deal”

_(Rachel and Santana)…Some people wait a lifetime for a moment like this…Oh, like this…_

“You promise?” Kurt asks.

“I do!” Blaine replies with a smile.

The song comes to an end and everybody stands up and claps excited. Some of the guests are crying with happiness and some are smiling widely, because that had been the most beautiful moment of the night. A moment full of love that left everybody smiling.

Kurt and Blaine kiss each other again, not before whispering a sweet _‘I love you’_ into each other’s ears. Kurt grabs Blaine’s hand and kisses his husband’s wedding ring. Blaine smiles tenderly and repeats the gesture.

Elliott walks to the stage while the guest are still clapping at the newlyweds who just danced their first song, and grabs the microphone that Santana is handing him. Smiling at his former band-mate, the NYU student whispers a soft _‘Thank you’_ as he takes the front of the stage.

“That was beautiful, wasn’t it?” He speaks through the microphone drawing the attention of everyone back to him and away of the couple who are still very much kissing each other fiercely.

“Beautiful beautiful song…And now for the parents dance we want to ask Nicholas & Pamela Anderson, and Burt & Carole Hummel to join your sons at the dance floor.” Elliott adds, and Burt, Carole, Nicholas and Pam stand up and start to make their way to the dance floor.

“While we wait for them to join us, we would like to make a very special mention to our two honorary guests tonight, Finn Hudson and Elizabeth Hummel. As you all know, they are no longer with us, but we are sure that wherever they are, they will be dancing this song with their families and celebrating the love of these two great warriors; Kurt and Blaine.” Elliott says.

Burt, Carole, Nicholas and Pamela stand next to their sons and smile at each other friendly as the member of _One Three Hill_ continues with his introduction speech, “Anyways…This song was specially requested by the couple to share with you in this beautiful moment. It’s a tribute for those who are with us tonight and for those who are too, but only in our hearts. This is for you…” He adds pointing to the new big Anderson-Hummel family.

Blaine grabs his mom’s hand and Kurt Carole’s, as they escort them to the center of the dance floor. The couples wait for the music to start but instead of hearing what they thought it would be a recorded audio of the song, they all are very surprised when the lights of the room suddenly turn off and a single spotlight illuminates one of the tables.

The warblers, already changed into their traditional blazers, start to sing making a very beautiful acapella version of the song.

_(The Warblers)…Music alibs…_

Blaine and Kurt look at each other and smile surprised. This was not part of the plan, but they were loving it. The warblers had been part of both their lives, and they couldn’t be happier to have them performing at their wedding. So without losing any more time, Blaine and Kurt start to dance with their respective mothers.

_(Elliott)…Oh, her eyes, her eyes, make the stars look like they’re not shining. Her hair, her hair, falls perfectly without her trying. She’s so beautiful, and I tell her every day…_

Elliott helps to sing the _‘just the way you are’_ part when suddenly a tall cooper-haired man joins the stage.

_(Sebastian)…I was thinking bout her, thinkin bout me…_

Sebastian, wearing his usual crooked smile grabs the other microphone and starts to sing, taking the lead with the _‘just a dream’_ part as the rest of the warblers help harmonizing the song.

_(Elliott)…I know, I know… (Sebastian)…Thinkin bout us, what we gon’ be… (Elliott)…when I compliment her she won’t believe me…(Sebastian)…Open my eyes yeah, it was only Just A Dream…(Elliott)…it’s so, it’s so, sad to think that she don’t see what I see, but every time she asks me do I look ok…(Sebastian)…It’s only a dream…(Elliott)…I say…_

The boys dance for some seconds with their moms until Burt takes a step closer and grabbing Kurt’s hand he dances with him. Blaine looks around a bit worried, thinking that his father is going to fail him again, but he’s surprised, when his old man, grabs his hand and with a big smile, starts to dance with him too.

_(Elliott)…When I see your face…(Sebastian)…So I traveled back, down that road. Will she come back, no one knows…(Elliott)…It’s Not a thing that I would change…(Sebastian)…I realize yeah, it was only Just A Dream…(Elliott)…Because girl you’re amazing, just the way you are…(Sebastian)…it was only Just A Dream…_

Not wanting to miss the chance to dance with all the members of their family, very quickly Kurt dances with Pamela while Blaine dances with Carole. After some seconds Burt takes Blaine hand and dances with him as Nicholas does the same with Kurt, who by the way, is very impressed with the way his father-in-law moves. The guy knows how to dance.

_(Elliott)…When I see your face…(Sebastian)…So I traveled back, down that road. Will she come back, no one knows…(Elliott)…It’s Not a thing that I would change. (Sebastian)…I realize yeah, it was only Just A Dream…(Elliott)…Cause girl you’re amazing, just the way you are…(Sebastian)…it was only Just A Dream…_

For the final part of the song, Blaine and Kurt take each other’s hands and starts to dance together as Nicholas dances with Carole and Burt with Pamela. _Who would have thought that one day the Anderson-Hummel family would be dancing like this at their son’s wedding?_

_(Elliott, Sebastian and the Warblers)…When I see your face…_

When the song comes to and end the 3 couples gather on the stage hug each other and between cheers from the rest of the guests they make their way back to their table.

After the statutory dances, the party flows for a an hour or so until the waiters start to fill the glasses with champagne. It was time for the speeches and the traditional toast for the grooms.

Burt stands up and taking the microphone that one of the guys from the hotel’s staff is handing him, he clears his throat before speaking. “Good night, family, friends of my sons, ummm…Other people…On behalf of the Anderson-Hummel family I want to give a warm welcome to all the relatives and friends who have joined us tonight to celebrate Kurt & Blaine. I know that many of you have traveled long distances just to be here tonight, so thank you all for coming and help us celebrate this very special day. Anyways, I want to take the first shot at this whole wedding speeches, because I don’t know if I’ll be able to talk later. Believe me or not, I’m a very emotional guy, so…Tonight I just want to say a few words to my two sons, Kurt and Blaine…” Burt adds looking at the boys.

“Today I must admit that I am the proudest dad in the world to have accompanied my son in this very special day. And I know that here’s where I am supposed to say a few embarrassing things about Kurt when he was younger, but I won’t do that. Because every time I think about my son, there’s nothing he has done that I feel embarrassed for. I’m a proud dad so I’ll just say that I am delighted that he has found Blaine because that kid over there…” He says pointing at Blaine.

“He saved my son…He has always been there for him and now I’m sure he will always be…People say that the key to a successful marriage is to choose the right partner for the right reason, and I think these two have already done that so I couldn’t be happier for them.” Burt says making a brief pause and then continuing. “There are two things which we as parents try to give our children, one is roots and the other one is wings. Kurt…you have now grown your wings and fled the nest, and it’s time you start your own family. In Blaine I believe that you have met your perfect partner. You two complement each other in a way I’ve never seen before…” He adds, and Blaine and Kurt look at each other with heart eyes.

“Treasure what you have kids and trust in the love you two feel for each other and I promise you that everything will be fine. Marriage is the meeting of two minds, of two hearts and of two souls. It is clear that you two are the perfect example of this, so may you be blessed with happiness that grows and with love that lasts forever. I wish you both all the happiness in the world and I hope, with all my heart, that you two can fulfill you dreams and hopes together. And that every day, from the rest of your lives you find in each other the joy and love your hearts will need to keep going. I love you kiddos!” Burt exclaims excited.

“And now…It is my pleasure to propose the first toast to the happy couple. Please stand up and raise your glasses to my sons, to the grooms Mr. & Mr. Anderson-Hummel” Burt finishes raising his glass.

Looking into Kurt and Blaine’s eyes, he lifts it a little bit more and takes a small sip in their honor. Kurt and Blaine smile sweetly at the man, because they know he’s trying with all his will to fight back the tears that are now building up in his eyes.

Carole stands up and looking at Kurt and Blaine, she speaks up, “Kurt…Blaine…You two can’t start to imagine what being here tonight sharing this important day with you means to me.” She says trying to keep her emotions at bay. “I always dreamt of being there for my son’s wedding and even though Finn is no longer here, I still ended up at my son’s wedding. Because that’s what you are to me Kurt, that’s what you both are for me…You two are now my sons and being here, and sharing this important day with you is like a dream come true. I wish you both the best in the world, and know that no matter what, you can always count on me. We live in two different places, but just know that I’m always there supporting you guys, if you need me just call and I’ll be there…As your mother….” She says smiling sweetly.

“And I think that it’s my duty, as Finn’s mom, to give you both today your official Glee name…” She says looking knowingly at the boys.

Kurt and Blaine look at each other and laugh a little. “If I recall correctly. At the speech my son gave at my wedding, he said that it was a tradition to merge the names of the couples at the glee club, so tonight I want to propose a toast for _Klaine_.” She adds causing the entire room to burst into a playful laughter. “I love you guys!” She finishes raising her glass and toasting for the new couple.

Kurt and Blaine smile at Carole with huge grins on their faces. _‘Klaine…’_ Kurt thinks to himself remembering his late brother and imagine how he would probably be calling them like that. With that thought about Finn, Kurt has to take some deep breaths. He’s suddenly feeling a knot in his throat that he knows can turn into a cascade of tears if he doesn’t control his emotions.

Pamela stands up next and instead of staying at her place, she walks the two chairs that separate her from the boys and gives them a sweet motherly hug before speaking up, “Oh my god! I’m so excited” She says already tearing a little. “For a mother, one of the best gifts in life is getting  to see her son getting married and more even, when he married someone as wonderful and handsome as Kurt. I would like to say a lot of things, but I don’t know if I can–” She says cracking into tears. “I’m-I’m sorry…” She quickly apologizes. “I would be brief…Baby, I love you okay? And I’m so proud of you! I wish you all-all the best in the world and Kurt…thank you for loving my son the way you love him. You’re a son for me now, and I want you to know that I love you as much as I love these two…” She adds pointing at Copper and Blaine.

“I wish you both all the happiness, love and–” She trails off as her emotions take over her and the tears start to roll uncontrollably down her cheeks.

Worried, both Kurt and Blaine, stand up and while they ask Pamela if she’s alright they hug her tightly trying to calm her down a bit.

Nicholas stands up and helps his wife get into her place. It’s his turn now, so without thinking it twice, the dark-haired man, clears his throat and looking at his son and son in law, he  starts with his formal speech. “Goodnight Ladies and Gentlemen…For those of you who don’t know me I’m Nicholas Anderson, Blaine’s dad. On behalf of my wife Pamela, my sons Cooper and Blaine, and my new family in law Burt, Carole and Kurt, I would like to give you all a warm welcome to this celebration.” He adds smiling slightly to the audience.

“I should probably make you aware from the very start that I lack any real practical experience as a speaker. Let’s say that I’m not acclaimed for being a great father either, so I apologize in advance for anything I could say that make you feel uncomfortable…” Nicholas trails off.

“Dad…” Blaine interrupts, but Nicholas shuts him up immediately. “No it’s true Blaine…I’m not going to try to cover this speech with lies son. We can’t pretend I won the award for the best father of the year because we all know that’s not true…Anyways what I said about not having experience as a speaker is true and the other part too. I have to admit it…I’m not a good father…Why? Because I have spent the last 15 years of my life ignoring and feeling ashamed of my own son.” Nicholas confesses leaving the whole audience speechless. It was not a secret, but hearing those words coming out from the man itself made the whole thing more believable.

“When I first heard about this wedding I thought that my son had lost it completely, but then when this beautiful family came to our house to have dinner, I learned that everything I’ve said and done during these past years had been a mistake.” Nicholas adds, taking some air to keep going.

Blaine is sweating nervously at the uncertainty of what his father is about to say, and Kurt is squeezing his hand tightly, silently telling him that he’s not alone.

“Since that day I’ve only had the chance to talk to my son two times, so I’ll seize the opportunity and instead of sharing anecdotes from Blaine’s childhood, I’ll try to say something for my son and son in law. First of all, Blaine…Your Mama and I feel blessed for having you in our lives and we hope you are aware just exactly how much we love you and how very proud we are of the lovely young man you have become. It has been an absolute joy to watch a very talkative, extremely inquisitive and often clumsy little boy develop into this very handsome, talented, clever, compassionate and extremely loving young man that I have in front of me. I also want you to know that it was my absolute honor and privilege to escort you down the aisle today…I told you earlier, but I’ll repeat it again. I’ve never been prouder of calling you my son…” Nicholas continues as some tears roll down Blaine’s face.

“And now Kurt…we met back then when you two were only ummm…boyfriends, and even though I didn’t tell you this when I first met you, I liked you since then. You were polite, very well mannered and an extremely likeable young man. So tonight, I want to thank you, in front of all these people, for always been there for my son when he needed it the most and for loving and cherishing him all these years. Tradition dictates that tonight as his father I must in a  way welcome you to our family, but the truth is that you are already part of the family. You always were and always will be…” Nicholas says and Kurt mouths a sweet _‘Thank you’_ as the man continues.

“You often wonder as a parent just how well your children will turn out. You wonder what sort of life decisions they will make especially those that you have no control over. What friends will they choose? Who will they pick as a partner to share their life with? Will that person love and care for them as well as you would? Will you approve? And tonight I’m delighted to witness that you have done right Blaine. You married an amazing man, you have amazing friends and I couldn’t be more proud of all the decisions you have made on your own…So I wish you both the best in this journey you’re about to start and know that you can always count on me when you need it. And since I can see Cooper and the rest of your friends eager to give their speeches, I’ll end with this…May your marriage be a truly happy one, may you begin with an unforgettable honeymoon and may you have a long and wonderful life together. Ladies and gentlemen…To Kurt and Blaine…My sons!” Nicholas finishes his speech raising his glass up in the air.

Blaine stands up and walks the small distance between the chairs to give his dad a bone crushing hug. The two Anderson men hug each other for a couple of minutes until Cooper, eager to start his speech clears his throat.

Blaine and Nicholas give the third Anderson some killing eyes, and the blue-eyed man just shrugs as he starts to give his memorable speech. “Goodnight everyone, my name is Cooper Anderson, I’m Blainey’s brother and his best man…Ummm I read somewhere that a best man speech shouldn’t take any longer than it takes the couple to make love. So ladies and gentlemen…I give you Mr. and Mr. Anderson-Hummel..” Cooper jokes taking a sip from his drink and sitting down.

The whole room erupts into laughter and the charming actor stands up again and while pacing around the dance floor, he continues. “Sorry about that, I couldn’t help it! The truth is that I didn’t really know where to start or how to make this speech, so I just browsed around the internet and after a couple of hours I‘d found some really, really good stuff. But then I remembered that I was supposed to be writing a speech so this is coming out from scratch…” He says flashing the audience with his crooked smile.

“Blaine…Or squirt for short. What can I say about you that these people don’t know already? You all know that Blaine has always been a man of uber intensity. When he knows what he wants he decides to go get it. I remember when we were younger, and one day he decided he wanted to learn this _Hanson_ choreography by heart. However, his little legs were not ready to dance already and I told him that. So Blaine, instead of giving up, obsessed with the idea of doing it insomuch that he rehearsed each and every day until he had the whole thing set up. For two months he worked his tail off for that silly choreography and eventually he learned it by heart. That’s when I knew what kind of guy my little brother was….” Cooper says making a small pause. “Certainly not the dancer kind of guy because between you and I little brother, that choreography sucked…”

The room burst into a new set of giggles while Blaine just rolls his eyes playfully at his brother. “And now about Kurt…hmmm what can I say about him? I remember that the first time I met him I couldn’t help but think, _‘hmmm so this is the guy who chooses the clothes for my baby brother!’_ ”

Kurt laughs loudly. “It’s true…I must admit that you have good taste in fashion Kurt, but there are certain people who can wear bowties and suspenders without looking ridiculous, and I’m afraid my brother is not one of them.” He adds winking at the grooms who burst into laughter again.

“I’m just joking, you know I love your style squirt.” He says winking again. “Anyways…I’ll continue…I remember that look in Blaine’s face when he first told me about this wedding. It was priceless, certainly something I could never forget. And not because my baby brother was telling me he was getting married, no. But because until that day I didn’t know what the word smitten really meant, but when I saw that radiant stupid glow shine off from his eyes, I told to myself… _’Oh, so that’s how smitten looks like’_ and that same day I made the decision to never look smitten myself, because if I was going to look like Blaine looked that night then I rather pass.” Cooper says laughing a little at his own silly and pointless joke. “No, but in all seriousness, that night I looked at him through the computer and knew from that moment that all he wanted was to be here today, because he had met his perfect match. The man he was going to love forever.” Cooper says looking at the grooms with a sincere look. “It was love at first sight…well it wasn’t really first sight, according to Blaine it was love at first song. Anyways, the point is that these two…” He adds pointing at them. “…Have had that magical type of romance that I thought you only see in the movies I starred.”

The audience laughs and cheers while Cooper continues, “Now…I know that I don’t have to tell them to cherish this day, and of course to cherish each other. I don’t have to tell them how special their relationship is, that they need to nurture and care for it. That they have to respect and care for each other, protect each other, love each other, because I know these two, and I know for sure that they know full well what they need to do. So everyone, raise your glasses high and join me in wishing these two wonderful souls a life full of happiness, magic and most of all love for the rest of their lives…May the sex never ends!” He adds taking a sip from his glass.

Everybody burst into laugh again and Kurt and Blaine roll their eyes at the same time trying hard to suppress their smiles. Giving up eventually, because Cooper’s speech had been funny and honest in his own unique way.

After that, some other guests including Elliott, Sam, Tina, Rachel, Mercedes, Santana, Brittany, Mike, Artie, Quinn, Puck, and even Mr. Schue, Isabelle and some NYADA teachers, give their respective and some not-so-short speeches. Kurt and Blaine are very moved with all the kind and sweet words their families and friends are giving them tonight, but now it was their time to share with each other some sweet and lovely words.

Blaine takes Kurt’s hand and stands up grabbing with his free hand the small microphone. “Before I start I want to thank you all for your amazing words tonight, you can’t start to imagine how much all of them mean to us. Cooper, Elliott, Tina, Rachel, Sam, Mercedes, Mike, Artie, Santana, Brittany, Quinn, Puck…I mean Noah, Madison, Wesley, Isabelle, Dani, Mr. Schue, Emma and all our friends thank you for all the support you gave us during all this time…” Blaine says smiling at all his friends.

“Mama, dad, Burt, Carole…thank you for being here tonight and for putting up with us through all these years. We thank you from the bottom of our hearts and know that we feel very fortunate to call you our family…we love you guys!” Blaine says giving a lovely smile to the people seated next to them.

“And now, Kurt…my husband…” He starts and pauses because the feeling of hearing that word coming out from his lips overwhelms him. “I’m so happy to finally be able to call you that. It’s sounds amazing, don’t you all agree?” He asks to the rest of the guests, briefly darting his eyes to the audience, but quickly returning his attention to his favorite sight, the man of his dreams. His husband.

The guests laugh and nod in agreement. “I wish I could find the right words to describe how I feel tonight, but I don’t think they even exist…I am absolutely delighted to be able to stand here today with you. I never knew what was missing in my life until I met you Kurt. You brought a new light to my life and for that I’ll always be thankful. Since that day when you snuck into Dalton, you have been my source of friendship, support and love. And I know that I already told you this, but you’re my safe haven Kurt. I once read that being deeply loved by someone gave you strength, while loving someone deeply gave you _courage_ and you are both things to me Kurt, my strength and my courage. I love you and I couldn’t be prouder to be here tonight, grabbing your hand and calling you my husband.”

Kurt smiles sweetly at the man he loves trying to fight back the tears that he has managed to keep at bay until now. He promised himself not to cry, and he was determined to fulfill his own promise.

“Thank you for all these years of happiness Kurt…People say, don’t marry someone you can live with, marry the person you can’t live without, and I think that sums us up perfectly. We’ve been through a lot and now we finally have the chance to start this new life together. And I promise to spend the rest of it making sure that you always feel loved and secure by my side. I love you so much and I can’t wait to grow old with you. Family and friends, please stand and raise your glasses to my husband, Mr. Kurt Anderson-Hummel!”

Blaine finishes his speech raising his glass and clinking it with Kurt’s. After the newlyweds take a quick sip from their drinks, Kurt launches himself to his husband’s arms and kisses him deeply, not really caring about the people staring at them with playful smiles.

“Sorry about that, but I love this man so much” Kurt quickly adds grabbing the microphone from his husband’s hand, once the kiss is over. “Now it’s my turn…” He says winking at the man beside him. “Hi everyone…Ummm…Tonight I’m a little confused, you know? I thought that my now husband’s speech would include a very romantic sappy piano version of one of our songs, but that didn’t happen…And being completely honest, I don’t know how I feel about that lack of music, but anyways…” He confesses squeezing Blaine’s hand tightly.

“I want to thank you all, our families and friends for being here with us tonight. We wouldn’t be standing here as a married couple without your support, so thank you! To our best men, maids of honor, family and friends, thanks for all your support during these crazy months of planning and rehearsing. I want to give a very specially shout-out to our friend Mike, who helped us with some dance lessons during the past month…seriously Mike, I don’t know how you managed to keep up with our clumsy moves, so thank you. To my father, Carole, Nicholas and Pamela thank you for everything!” Kurt adds giving his parents and parents in law a sweet smile.

“…And Blaine…” Kurt says finally looking back into beautiful hazel eyes. “…My best friend, my boyfriend, my lover, my fiance, my husband…Instead of giving you a very boring and probably tearful speech, I’m going to change things a little bit and I’m going to sing you a song that says all I feel right now, pay attention, because I mean every word okay? I love you!” Kurt exclaims as the notes of the song start to resound through the ballroom’s speakers.

_(Kurt)…At last my love has come along. My lonely days are over, and life is like a song…_

As soon as the song starts Kurt closes his eyes and loses himself in the lyrics. He wants to give every single word the right emotion. He wants his husband to know how much he really loves him and how happy he is to finally be with him forever.

_(Kurt)…Oh yeah yeah at last the skies above are blue. My heart was wrapped up in clover, the night I looked at you…_

Blaine squeezes Kurt’s hand tightly and the blue-eyed man opens his eyes. The two newlyweds look at each other with heart eyes. Love emanating from both of them as they tell with simple looks, how much they love each other.

_(Kurt)…I found a dream, that I can speak to. A dream that I, can call my own. I found a thrill, to press my cheek to. A thrill that I have never known…_

Some tears start to roll down Blaine’s eyes and Kurt has to use all his will not to cry too. So instead of looking into his husband’s eyes, he focuses on his mouth and the way his lips are slightly curved in the form of a smile. How he sticks out his tongue and brushes it against his lips making Kurt to blush a little as he continues singing.

_(Kurt)…Oh yeah yeah, you smiled you smiled and then the spell was cast. And here we are, in Heaven. For you are mine at last…_

The song reaches the music bridge and Kurt takes the opportunity to help his husband to stand up from his chair. Blaine takes both Kurt’s hands and smiles at him all lovely as Kurt keeps pouring out his heart with the song.

_(Kurt)…I found a dream, that I could speak to. A dream that I, can call my own. I found a thrill, to press my cheek to. A thrill that I have never known…_

The rest of the guests seem to be lost in this beautiful shared moment that the grooms are giving them. All the couples in the room are hugging each other, surely moved by the lovely scene displayed in front of them.

_(Kurt)…Oh yeah you smiled, you smiled oh and then the spell was cast. And here we are, in Heaven. For you are mine at last, at last,_

Kurt raise his hand and very sweetly, he caresses his husband’s face, making the other man to smile as if he had found the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

_(Kurt)…Hmmmm…ohhhh…mmmm….at last…_

 When the song comes to an end, Kurt wipes the tears from Blaine’s face and hugs him tightly. Blaine ducks his head on Kurt’s neck and whispering he says, “That was beautiful…I love you…”

“I love you too…” Kurt says breathing a smile.

Looking to the rest of the audience, Kurt raises his glass and exclaims, “To my husband, Blaine Anderson-Hummel!” As he kisses Blaine before taking a sip of the bubbly drink.

Pale hands run down the length of Santana’s sides landing at her hips. Brittany grasps onto her wife’s hips a little tighter as she pushes her backwards, causing the back of the Latina’s thighs to hit the porcelain sinks that line the wall. Santana cups the back of Brittany’s neck pulling her in closer as their lips mold together in a passionate kiss. Hands roam each others bodies, both gasping for air as their breathings turn labored; feeling the others hot breaths hit against their own lips before reattaching them. Brittany sucks Santana’s bottom lip, playfully nipping at it before letting it go and placing a trail of open mouth kisses down the shorter woman’s neck. A moan escapes from between Santana’s plump lips when she feels her wife’s tongue swiping across her collarbone. Unable to contain herself anymore, Santana runs her fingers through blonde locks, light scratching at her wife’s scalp and smirking when she hears an approving sigh fall from Brittany’s thin pink lips. Brittany leans her head back, dark blue lustful eyes meet hooded brown eyes staring back at her. Santana bites her own lower lip before running her hands up the front of the taller woman’s front side, feeling the tones muscles under the thin fabric of her dress twitch under her touch. She slides her hands around the dancer’s waist and pull her impossibly closer. Brittany dips her head back down and captures Santana’s lips between hers, running her tongue along the brunette’s lower lips greedily asking for entrance which Santana readily gives.

The heavy wooden door to the bathroom pushes open, unbeknownst to the two preoccupied lovers. Quinn steps all the way in, her heels clicking on the tiled floor as she rummages through her purse, having yet to look up. Grabbing her red cased lipstick out of her silver clutch the short haired blonde looks up to make her way to the mirrors when she spots Brittany and Santana in their compromising position.

“Girls! My goodness, get a room!”

Brittany quickly pulls her slightly swollen lips from her wife’s when she hears her long time friend’s voice. With wide eyes she ducks her head to her chest, taking a step back as her cheeks and the tip of her ears turn a bright shade of red at being caught making out with her wife like they were horny teenagers.

Smirking, Santana doesn’t even bother dropping her hands from their rested spot on Brittany’s hips as her eyes drift to the third member of the group once known as the Unholy Trinity. “We did Fabitch.” Santana quips, playfully narrowing her eyes at the intruder. “Not my fault you walked in to it.” She wraps her arms tighter around her wife’s supple waist but still glaring at Quinn. “Get lost Stretch Marks, I’m trying to get my mack on.”

Brittany giggles between kisses to Santana’s cheek and neck, now feeling slightly less embarrassed. She places a soft kiss behind the brunette’s ear before not-so-quietly whispering, “Be nice Sanny.”

Letting out and airy chuckle at the feeling of Brittany’s breath hit her neck, Santana rolls her eyes while her smile spreads even wider traveling all the way to her eyes. “Okay, okay.” She turns her head into Brittany causing the tall blonde to pull back slightly and accept the chase kiss Santana pressed to her lips, with a smile.

Both women are lost in each others eyes, almost forgetting about the other blonde who is now standing in front of the mirror above the sink next to them re-applying her lipstick and touching up the rest of her makeup.

Nudging Santana, Brittany raises her eyebrows in Quinn’s direction as she caresses the small of her back. Santana shakes her head at herself before mumbling out a barely noticeable, “Sorry…” In Quinn’s direction.

Quinn leans back from the mirror and throws a smirk towards her wanna-be-tough friend. “No problem….Sanny.” She mocks, grinning at the shy look she got in return as Santana looked down to the ground, running her lip through her teeth.

Making her way back toward the door Quinn looks over her shoulder, saying, “Hurry up, ‘cause we are up in five minutes to sing our song.” She gives them a pointed look before exiting the bathroom.

“We should probably head back out.” Brittany runs her hands through her long flowing blonde locks. Tearing her eyes away from the door that clicked closes behind Quinn, she turns her gaze back to her wife. Sending her a seductive wink as she says, “And if we stay in her any longer we will be longer than five minutes.” She lets out a chuckle.

Santana looks up to the blonde through her long lashes, running her hands up and down Brittany’s forearms while nodding in agreeance. “Yeah, you’re right. Good thing there’s always the hotel after party.” She smiles up to her wife. Brittany’s eyes darken at the thought. Seeing the want fill the taller woman’s eyes Santana shakes her head, a smile still playing at her lips. Her hands slide down the smooth skin of Brittany’s arms before landing in the palm of her hand. Santana laces their fingers together and tugs on Brittany’s hand as they both lean into each other, giggling on their way out of the bathroom.

The thudding of the music throughout the large room starts to fade out and the song  changes as most of the guests return to their tables. Tina, Quinn, Mercedes, Rachel, Brittany, Santana, and Madison remain at the dance floor and start to make their way to the stage. Between smiles and giggles, they take their positions to what seems is going to be a dancing and singing number.

Santana grabs the nearest microphone and after testing that everyone can hear her she says, “Your attention please! Goodnight Everyone! For those of you who don’t know who I am, my name is Santana Pierce-Lopez! I already sang, but my dearest friend here Rachel forgot to tell you who I was so hello again…” She says darting mocking eyes to her brunette friend.

“Anyways, I took some time from my very busy agenda as a very famous T.V star to prepare a little something for my friends–” She says and makes a small pause.

All her friends look at her worried that she can say one of her very used and quite offensive nicknames, but the Latina surprises them all by just saying, “–Kurt and Blaine”

Kurt and Blaine smile at the girls and excited they wait for the girls to start with her performance. Santana takes her place next to Quinn and whispering into the microphone she adds, “…So this is for you guys as a gift from all of us…Enjoy.”

_(Santana)…Hm, c’mon…I don’t want to go another day, so I’m telling you, exactly what is on my mind…_

The Latina starts to sing, tapping the slow beat of the song against the handle of the mic with her left hand, as the rest of the girls sway and dance around her. Kurt and Blaine smile at each other when they recognize the song and then fix their gazes towards their friends.

_(Mercedes)…Seems as like everybody is breaking up and throwing their love away. But I know I got a good thing right here, that’s why I say (hey)…_

Mercedes takes a step forward, joining her hand with Santana’s hand as she takes the lead on next line. She sends the grooms a friendly wink as Santana point to the two men with a smile.

_(All) Nobody gonna love me better, I’m gon’ stick wit you forever. Nobody gonna take me higher, I’m gon’ stick wit you. You know how to appreciate me, I’m gon’ stick wit you, my baby. Nobody ever made me feel this way, I’ma stick wit you…_

The seven girls join their voices to sing the chorus together while they snap their fingers with the rhythm of the song. Placing their hands over their hearts as they look to their two newlywed friends as they harmonize together.

Meanwhile, Kurt and Blaine exchange a quick peck on the lips as they girls keep performing for them.

_(Quinn)…I don’t want to go another day, so I’m telling you, exactly what is on my mind…_

The girls take a step back leaving Quinn alone at the front of the stage. The Yale student smiles at the newlyweds, gripping onto her mic and sings her solo part. Taking a glance at her boyfriend, shooting him a quick smile before returning her gaze to the two grooms.

_(Rachel)…See the way we ride, in our private lives ain’t nobody gettin’ in between. I want you to know that, you’re the only one for me…_

Rachel takes a step forward, and just like Mercedes did, she grabs Quinn’s hand as she sings the next part of the song. Quinn leans into Rachel’s side swaying her head from side to side as she listens to Rachel sing, before they both step back, joining the rest of the group.

_(All)…Nobody gonna love me better, I’m gon’ stick wit you forever. Nobody gonna take me higher, I’m gon’ stick wit you. You know how to appreciate me, I’m gon’ stick wit you, my baby. Nobody ever made me feel this way, I’ma stick wit you…_

All the girls unite their voices again to sing the chorus. Suddenly Madison, Brittany and Tina climb down the stage and walk across the dance floor until they reach the head table.

_(Madison)…And now, ain’t nothing else I can need.._

Kurt and Blaine smile at the girls not really getting why they were planning to do. The three girls exchange conspiratorial smiles as Madison starts to sing.

_(Brittany)…And now, I’m singing ’cause you’re so, so into me!…_

Tina grabs both Kurt and Blaine’s hands and makes them stand up to join them as Brittany sings her line. They pull both men out from behind their table, guiding them across the dance floor.

_(Tina)…I got you, we’ll be making love endlessly…_

The three girls, along with the grooms, make their way to the stage as Tina serenades them. Blaine smiles fondly at his best friend and Kurt gives the Asian girl a genuine smile. The little incident with the vaporub long forgotten.

_(Tina, Brittany and Madison)…I’m with you, baby you’re with me!_

The group reaches the stage and as Tina, Brittany and Madison lean into each other and sing. Mercedes and Santana help Kurt and Blaine to climb the stairs and join them.

_(Santana)…So don’t ya worry about, people hanging around, they ain’t bring us down! I know you, and you know me, and that’s all that counts…_

Santana puts an arm around Kurt and Blaine, and smiling at the couple, she rasps out singing as the rest of the guests starts to clap following the slowly r&b beat of the song.

_(Mercedes)…So don’t ya worry about, people hanging around, they ain’t bring us down! I know you, and you know me and that’s why, that’s why I say…_

Mercedes pushes Santana in a friendly way to have some access to the grooms. Santana laughs but takes a step back to give the soul diva some space to sing to the newlyweds too.

_(All)…Nobody gonna love me better, I’m gon’ stick wit you forever. Nobody gonna take me higher, I’m gon’ stick wit you. You know how to appreciate me, I’m gon’ stick wit you, my baby. Nobody ever made me feel this way, I’ma stick wit you…_

The girls starts to make a circle around the happy couple as they all join their voices to sing the last choruses of the song. Blaine and Kurt smile at all of them and swing with them as they also snap their fingers.

_(All)…Nobody gonna love me better, I’m gon’ stick wit you forever. Nobody gonna take me higher, I’m gon’ stick wit you. You know how to appreciate me, I’m gon’ stick wit you, my baby. Nobody ever made me feel this way, I’ma stick wit you…_

The song comes to an end and between cheers and a standing ovation. The girls pull the newlyweds into a hug. Exchanging whispers of wishing them the happiest of marriage and the best of luck.

Santana leans up against the wall off to the side of the dance floor as she watches her wife get dragged away by Mercedes and Madison to the middle of the dance floor. A smile tugs at the corners of her lips as she watches Brittany pretending to dance badly. But even as the blonde does moves like _‘the sprinkler’_ she still manages to look so gracefully, like she physically can’t be bad at anything she does. Santana continues to stare out at the dance floor as she feels a new presence take the spot on the wall next to her. She knows who it is without even having to turn her head in her direction. The two women stand there up against the wall in silence, both of their eyes trailing the movements of the tall blonde laughing and dancing along with her friends.

“Are you happy?” Dani’s voice finally breaks the silence as she shifts her gaze from Brittany to her ex next to her. Looking at Santana trying to read her reaction to the question.

Unshed tears gloss over brown eyes, never tearing them away from her wife’s dancing form. Brittany pretends to _‘walk like an egyption’_ causing a watery smile to crack at Santana’s lips as a chuckle leaves her lips. Swallowing thickly, she runs her eyes over Brittany’s length, feeling her heart beat quicken, before answering Dani’s question, “More than I could have ever imagined.”

Santana could feel Dani’s eyes still on her, burning a hole into the side of her head. She turns and meets Dani’s stare. Her ex gives her a small smile along with a simple head nod. Santana sends her a simple smile back before looking to the floor, then back to the dance floor. Brittany is now being twirled in circles by Wesley, her dress flowing out with her as she spins.

“Good.” Dani finally finds her voice again, causing Santana’s head to whip back around to face her with a raised eyebrow, not expecting that response. Dani shifts in her stance before speaking again, “That’s all I’ve ever wanted for you Santana…I think in the back of my mind I always knew something was missing for you.”

“Dani I really didn–”

“Don’t.” Dani says simply. “I know. You were a great girlfriend. But you didn’t love me. Not the way you do her. I think I always kind of knew that. I guess I thought over time you’d get over her…” The blue haired girl trails off for a second, letting her eyes travel back to the dance floor. “I’m glad you two made it, that she makes you happy…She seems like a very sweet girl.”

Not knowing what else to say, Santana just nods her head. She knew Dani was right. She even told Dani when they first met that she loved Brittany. But she too thought her heart ache from not being with Brittany would eventually fade away. But the funny thing about true love, about real love, was that no matter how hard you try, you can’t move on, you can’t forget. Brittany was under Santana’s skin, etched on her like a tattoo that would never go away. She was, no, she is, the love of her life. There was a time where she thought that that didn’t matter. That it was better for them both to just be friends. But call it fate or whatever, they were meant to be together, forever. And just like that they found their rightful places back with each other, and Santana couldn’t be happier. She wished the best for Dani. She did care about her. But, Dani was right, she doesn’t love her, especially not like she does Brittany.

A silence falls over the two women. Normally they both would of probably expected it to be an awkward one. But this wasn’t. There was a new understanding between them. They both silently wished the best for each other and agreeing that they weren’t meant to be together. It was the closure that Dani secretly needed. She knew their relationship didn’t end because of anything she did, she just couldn’t stand in the way of true love.

There’s another momentary pause before Dani pushes off the wall. With one last look to Santana, she gives her a smile silently wishing her the best. Santana returns the smile before Dani turns and walks away.

Letting out a long breath, Santana stands up from the wall. Smoothing out her dress she steps out onto the dance floor. Making her way up behind Wesley she taps on his shoulder. He casts his eyes in her direction. She clears her throat before politely asking, “Do you mind if I cut in?” Pointing towards her wife.

Wesley smiles his cheeky smile and ducks his head as he backs away from Brittany, “She’s all yours Mrs. Pierce-Lopez.” He responds in a gentlemen like fashion

Laughing, Santana scrunches her nose in his direction with a playful smile before stepping in and directing her gaze to the blonde before her. “Hi there, gorgeous.”

Brittany blushes as she places her arms around Santana’s neck, feeling the brunette snake her arms around her waist. “Hi, beautiful.” She whispers back. They lean into each others embrace as they sway together, getting lost in each others eyes and the beat of their synced hearts more than the music.

A tall man in his young thirties takes the stage and grabbing the microphone, he clears his throat. “Goodnight Everyone, it’s me again. Cooper Anderson! This time I won’t say much, I just really hope you’re having a great time! This is an awesome party well done Kurt!” He says pointing at Kurt.

The audience cheers a little and Kurt smiles friendly. He knew he had done great, the party had been a success so far.

“Well, I’m standing here tonight, because the girls already had their turn to show their talent, and it was lovely and all, but now it’s our turn. Squirts, I asked your friends for some help since I know you two love these silly unrehearsed numbers, so…gentlemen…” Cooper says encouraging the boys to join the stage.

Sam, Elliott, Puck, Artie, Mike, Wesley, Sebastian, and some of the warblers stand up from their respective tables and join Cooper on the stage.

“This is for my two little baby brothers! I love you guys!” Cooper yells through the microphone as he takes a seat in one of the stools that the rest of the guys are settling in the stage.

_(Warblers)…Yeah….oh_

The warblers, taking advantage of their uniqueness ability to make every song to sound better with an acapella version, start to harmonize the song as Cooper clears his throat and starts to sing.

_(Cooper)…Some people live for the fortune, some people live for the fame. Some people live for the power yeah, some people live just to play the game…_

Blaine and Kurt smile at their friends. They feel blessed to have such an amazing family, because that’s what they are for them. Their big extended family.

_(Sebastian)…Some people think that the physical things define what’s within. And I’ve been there before, but that life’s a bore…so full of the superficial…_

Sebastian, takes the lead in the next part of the song and surprisingly, this time he doesn’t flirt with Blaine. He just sings his part, snapping along with the beat and smiles at the happy couple.

_(Puck)…Some people want it all, but I don’t want nothing at all If it ain’t you baby. If I ain’t got you baby…_

Puck takes his microphone and adds his own raspy twist to the song. He’s truly and genuinely happy for his friends, to the point that at the ceremony, he even tried to hide a stray tear that he quickly wiped with the sleeve of his uniform. Obviously nobody noticed it, except for Quinn, who just laughed and let her man expressed his feelings.

_(Artie)…Some people want diamond rings, some just want everything. And everything means nothing. If I ain’t got you yeah…_

Artie wheels his chair a bit to the front as he finishes the chorus of the song. Kurt, Blaine and the rest of the guests are amazed by the beautiful performance their friends are giving them.

_(Sam)…Some people search for a fountain, promises forever young. Wait! Some people need three dozen roses, and that’s the only way to prove you love them…_

As Artie takes his previous position, Sam grabs the microphone Puck is handing him and keeps singing, smiling all friendly to his high school best friend and best friend’s husband.

_(Wesley)…Hand me the world on a silver platter and what good would it be. With no one to share, no one who truly cares for me…_

Wesley, who’s already part of this insanely talented group, takes the microphone from Sam’s hand and adds a little bit of his talent to the song. He sings as he stares at the newlyweds, not before darting a quick wink to his girlfriend who’s watching the performance from afar.

_(Elliott)…Some people want it all, but I don’t want nothing at all If it ain’t you baby. If I ain’t got you baby_

Elliott sings the next line of the song as he looks back and forth between Kurt and Blaine. Even though they have know each other for a brief period of time, he already feels that these two men are going to be his friends forever and that makes him smile broadly.

_(Mike)…Some people want diamond rings, some just want everything. But everything means nothing If I ain’t got you, you, you…_

Mike, doubtfully takes the microphone that his friends are handing him and starts to sing. They all know that this guy can sing, he’s just afraid to admit it. Blaine can’t help the proud smile on his face as he watches his friend grow his confidence and sing amazingly.

_(Sebastian and the Warblers)…Some people want it all, but I don’t want nothing at all If it ain’t you baby. If I ain’t got you baby…_

For the last part of the song, the warblers join their voices and following Sebastian’s lead voice, the sing the first part of the last chorus.

_(All)…Some people want diamond rings, some just want everything. But everything means nothing (Cooper)….If I ain’t got you…_

The rest of the guys join the warblers and together all the boys sing to Kurt and Blaine, leaving the last part to the best man.

_(Cooper)…If I ain’t got you with me baby…there ain’t nothing in this whole wide world doesn’t mean a thing…If I ain’t got you with me baby yeah….Yeah! We love you guys!_

Cooper finishes the song standing up and bowing immediately. The whole audience burst into cheers and both Kurt and Blaine stand up to give all their friends a well-deserved standing ovation followed by a hug.

“Thank you guys! That was awesome!” Blaine exclaims as soon as they reach the group.

“And we didn’t even rehearse…” Puck states.

“You did great!” Kurt exclaims

“Thank you…and now let’s have a round of drinks for the happy couple!” Artie exclaims raising his hands and calling the nearest waiter.

As soon as everyone has a drink in their respective hands, Cooper raises his voice and yells, “To my brothers!”

“To Kurt and Blaine!” Everyone repeats clinking their glasses in the air, as the party continues.

The group of friends and family, and a few acquaintances are all gather at the Plaza Hotel Ballroom enjoying the music, the alcohol and each others company. They have been dancing non-stop since the music started and everybody is wearing a big smile on their faces, ignoring the sweat and the ach of their tiring feet, refusing to stop the party. Even Mr. Anderson looks like the happiest and most proud dad in the room while he tries to mimic one of his sons friends dancing as he _‘does the dougie’_ , while his wife laughs and sways enthusiastically next to him.

Next to the Anderson’s, dancing his body off and showing that the dads can dance too, is a very happy version of Burt Hummel. So far the wedding have been perfect and running smooth, just like the boys had dreamed it would be.

“Don’t you love seeing how happy they look?” Kurt whispers into Blaine’s ear as he watches his dad dancing and joking with Nicholas.

Blaine raises his head from Kurt’s shoulder and looks at his father and father-in-law before smiling at the scene. “I never imagined my dad would be here, dancing and joking around with your dad. This is like a dream come true!” Blaine confesses.

“Well it is our dream come true…” Kurt replies leaning over and kissing his husband. _‘Wow, husband…That sounds amazing.’_ He thought to himself. Right in the middle of their passionate kiss as Kurt was pulling Blaine in closer by wrapping his arms around the latters necks, one Mike Chang stumbles upon them making them jump.

“Sorry guys this time I didn’t want to interrupt…I was just dancing.” Mike apologizes.

The newlyweds laugh because in the past month Mike has become some kind of human barrier between them. Every time that the Asian man started his _‘wedding dance’_ lessons he made sure that Kurt and Blaine were as far away from each other as possible. He even started to invite Elliott to the rehearsals so the now husbands had someone else to dance with, because they very first attempts to try it together, had ended up with Mike almost wanting to quit.

“No problem Mike!” Blaine exclaims excited. “What was that move you were doing…I haven’t seen it before…”

“Oh! That’s because it’s brand new…It’s like a mix between Mike Chang’s special moonwalk and my recent invention…The boogie robot!”

“That sounds like an amazing dance move!” Kurt replies politely as he watches his friend showing them all the new dance move.

Brittany, who was dancing next to them, chirps in. “I taught him that at P.L.A.D., you guys should enroll too.” She wiggles her eyebrows as she seizes the opportunity to promote her school.

“Maybe the next time I go to L.A. I could use some classes Britt.” Mercedes says trying to humor her friend.

“Yes Cedes! You should definitely go! I’ll even give you an extra free class…” Brittany exclaims excited.

“Sounds good girl!” She winks before turning her attention back to her boyfriend and asking, “Babe, I’m a bit thirsty would you go with me for something to drink?”

The blonde man nods and the couple immediately walk away heading toward the bar, hand in hand. Sam asks for their drinks and as the bartender is preparing them, he leans over the counter and looking straight into his girlfriend’s eyes, he says, “So…I was thinking…” He says taking a deep breath. “We’ve been together these past few weeks and everything is good right?” He asks.

Mercedes nods slowly, eyeing Sam, not really getting what he really was trying to say. “What is it Sam?”

“Nothing, it’s just that when we got back together, you said that things between us would be difficult because you’d be traveling between San Diego and Ohio and yeah, you’re right…But I don’t know, I was thinking that maybe-that we could…That maybe…”

Mercedes gets impatient and asks, “That we what?”

Sam sighs and runs his hand through his blonde hair. In a low whisper he spills out his new idea. “Try to live together when you’re staying at Ohio.”

“Come again?” Mercedes asks with wide eyes clearly surprised. She did hear what he had said but, she wanted to make sure she heard correctly.

“We already did it back in New York, it’s not something new. I know your rules about sex, so don’t worry this has nothing to do with that. I respect that. But, I was just thinking that maybe you could stay with me instead of going to your parent’s house…That way we could have more time together…But forget it! Don’t worry, it was just a stupid idea…Let’s go dance again.” Sam tugs on Mercedes hand, already trying to walk away and towards the dance floor. _‘Why did I suggest that!’_ He’s thinking to himself.

Mercedes pulls back on Sam’s arm to stop him. “No! Wait!…Yes…”

Sam lips twist in confusion. Mercedes’ smile grows as she clarifies, “Yes Sam…Let’s try that again…”

Sam’s smile grows as his lips twist and cock to the left before leaning in and capturing his girlfriend’s lips with his. Lips molding together, moving slowly as they both smile into the kiss.

Brittany and Santana approach the bar and spot the couple in their lip lock causing the two women to stop in their tracks.

“Sam! Mercedes! Get a room!” Brittany mocks with a playful smile.

The happy couple just laughs as they break apart from their kiss, a little hazy from the intensity; flashing their friends a smile as they make their way back to the dance floor leaving the already married couple alone by the bar.

The girls raise their already empty glasses, up for the bartender to see. The bartender quickly makes two new drinks and slides it across the bar to them. Santana lifts her glass to her lips to take a quick sip. Her ear perk up at the sound of her wife’s voice as Brittany says, “I want to have a little sweet mini Brittana baby, one that looks just like you.”

Santana chokes on her drink, pressing her lips together tightly to make sure she doesn’t spit her delicious cocktail everywhere. She swallows thickly and with wide eyes she says, “Britt, we’ve only been married a little over two months.”

Brittany smiles widely, “I know! But I’m totally ready aren’t you?”

Santana can’t help but smile at her wife’s adorableness, even though she is internally panicking and her heart is racing, thudding quickly under her ribcage. “Babe,” She starts out slowly, “There’s a lot to discuss when it comes to this.” She confesses as her head starts to swirl with all the thoughts and questions already popping up; _Who would carry? What would it mean for their careers? Who would they use as the sperm donor? Where they even ready for kids yet? Would they have to move to a bigger place?_ , and so many more.

“So, so much to think about–” Santana says still in shock. “–and we will discuss it, but maybe not here.” She pauses before quickly adding, “But just for the record…I’d love to have a little Brittany…Someday.” A smile tugs at her lips as the imagine of a mini Brittany plays in the back of her mind.

Brittany smiles a huge smile and leans over to give her wife a sweet peck on the lips.

“Okay, let’s go back to our table…” Santana says, “My legs are killing me…”

Brittany nods and the two make their way back to table where Puck and Quinn seem to be in the middle of an important conversation.

“Babe…Are you going to tell me what’s wrong?” Puck asks Quinn as he brushes his fingers across Quinn’s face.

Quinn shakes her head and says, “Nothing it’s wrong, but I want to ask you something and I’m afraid you’re going to get mad…”

Puck looks at his girlfriend and says, “You know you can ask me anything. I promise I won’t get mad…”

Taking a deep breath and looking into her boyfriend’s beautiful green eyes, Quinn says, “Okay, but before that…How long are you staying this time?”

“A couple of days…Why?” Puck replies with a small frown.

Quinn hesitates whether to share her idea or not. _‘What if he says no?’_ She questions herself.

“What’s it Quinn?”

Signing and closing her eyes, Quinn confesses, “I want us to stay in New York for a few more days. I want to go visit our daughter. I want to see Beth.”

Puck’s eyes open widely but he doesn’t reply. Quinn, noticing that the military man hasn’t said anything, asks again, “Did you hear what I said? I want to go see our daughter.”

Scrunching her brows in anger when she hears the laugh escape from Puck’s lips, she asks, “What’s so funny?”

“Nothing! Sorry, I didn’t mean to laugh, but I already knew you would probably want that so…Ummm I went ahead and I talked to Shelby yesterday. We’re having lunch with them tomorrow.” Puck replies, a huge grin on his face. He knew his girlfriend too well.

Quinn expression immediately changes as a huge smile spreads across her face. “Oh my God! Really? I love you so much!”

“I love you too!” Puck simply replies leaning over and kissing the love of his life. “Now let’s go dance!”

Quinn nods and hand in hand, they walk back to the dance floor and settle just next to Madison and Artie, who are laughing while Artie makes his chair spin with the rhythm of the music.

Between giggles Madison suddenly says, “Move in with me.”

Artie, clearly surprised by the sudden proposition, just says, “I’m sorry come again?”

Madison blushes and repeats herself, “Yeah, will you move in with me?”

Searching for clarification, he asks, “Are you serious?” and Madison nods excited.

Artie thinks about it and not wanting to hurt his girlfriend’s feelings, he tries to explain himself. “Look Madi, I would love to, believe me that I would, but you have… _We_ have to take into account my condition. Fortunately, you do not know what it’s like to travel in a wheelchair, but it is difficult. It is not easy Madi. There are many things that must be adapted for a disabled person, ramps, doors–” Artie is explaining when Madison interrupts.

“Shhhh I know, and we will…I just want to be with you forever, is that too much to ask? Besides I forgot to tell you, my building has an elevator…”

Artie laughs and kisses his girlfriend. Madison knowing she was winning this argument, just asks, “So…Is that a yes?”

Artie already smiling says, “Hmmmm, I don’t know. Let me think…Do you have a bathtub?”

Madison nods smiling and Artie kisses her again. “You sold me with that! Deal baby!”

Madison smiles widely and Tina, who was dancing with Shane next to them, looks at the couple and mouths a _‘Congratulations’_ to Artie. Who just nods and gives her a sweet smile.

“Why are you congratulating him?” Shane asks, noticing the silence exchange between the two friends.

“Didn’t you hear? They are moving in together!” Tina shares what she overheard.

“That’s great!” Shane replies genuinely happy, even though he just met all his girlfriend’s friends. But he has heard enough about them to root for them and their respective happiness. “If I asked you to move in with me, would you do that? I mean once you’re done with college…Would you move in with me?”

“Are you serious?” Tina asks contemplating the possibility.

“Yes, I’m dead serious…” Shane replies with a serious tone.

Tina thinks about it for like less than half a second and launching herself towards her boyfriend’s arms she yells, “Yes! Yes! Yes!”

Shane smiles broadly and starts to spin Tina in the air. The two laugh until, accidentally, Tina kicks someone with her extended legs. “Sorry about–” She starts to apologize when she notices who she hit.

“Oh! Mike I’m sorry!” She quickly apologizes smiling at her ex boyfriend and now just friend.

“Don’t worry T, it’s fine…We were just going back to our table, but I’m fine don’t worry!” Mike replies.

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, don’t worry.” The dancer repeats as he and Naomi walk back to their table to rest a little.

Mike takes a seat and immediately Naomi leans over and starts to kiss him. Mike laughs and between kisses he asks, “So…What do you think about my friends?”

Naomi smiles playfully and says, “Hmmm…” while she thinks of an answer.

“Describe them in one word…” Mike challenges her.

“Just one word?” Naomi quirks an eyebrow while laughing.

Mike just nods and Naomi, frowning in thought, continues, “That’s tough challenge, but if I can just use one word then…”

“Yes one word…Think hard!” Mike repeats the rules.

Naomi smiles and says, “Talented.”

Mike laughs and kissing his girlfriend’s lips, he exclaims “Very …Accurate…”

“It’s the truth!” Naomi confesses. “I mean, all of them sing, some dance, others act… And some of them do all three! God! What did they give you all at that school?”

Mike laughs and replies, ”Confidence…”

At some corner of the huge ballroom a couple is giggling and kissing each other as they make out hidden from the rest of the guests like two teenagers at the high school prom.

“How old are we?” Kurt asks between kisses. His lips attacking Blaine’s jaw.

“Old enough to know that this is hot…now shut up and kiss me!” Blaine replies as his lips find Kurt’s.

With all they have been waiting for this day, the two boys are eager to rip each other clothes. But they know they’ll have to wait, because after the party, they are supposed to be taking a flight that’s going to take them to their honeymoon, so there will be no wedding night, until they are at their honeymoon.

“Re-remind me again, why we decided to skip the wedding night?” Kurt asks panting.

“Because you wanted us to be there tomorrow, that’s why…” Blaine replies without stop kissing his husband’s neck.

“Well Mr. Anderson-Hummel next time don’t listen to every word I say, okay? This is going to be so hard…” He murmurs kissing his husband’s lips again.

“Yes…indeed, so maybe we should cool off a bit?” Blaine suggests.

“Yeah, you’re right” Kurt agrees just resting his head on Blaine’s shoulder as the two boys try to recover their breaths.

After some minutes, Kurt raises his head and looking into hazel eyes, he says, “I love you, you know? I know I have been repeating the same thing over and over again tonight, but I don’t care because it’s true…I.Love.You.” Kurt repeats, making sure to say the last words slowly and clearly as possible.

“I love you too, and you can’t even start to imagine how much!” Blaine replies, getting a little too emotional as his eyes well up with tears, yet again.

“Am I already a bad husband for loving this overly emotional side of you?” Kurt asks looking at Blaine’s teary eyes.

Blaine laughs a little as the tears roll down his face. “You can’t never, ever, be a bad husband”

“Awww you’re such a sweetheart Mr. Blaine Devon Anderson-Hummel!” Kurt exclaims with a huge grin on his face. “God! I love how that sounds…don’t you think it kind of gives us more status?” Kurt asks playfully

“Yeah it makes our names sound important…” Blaine agrees.

“Yeah it’s true…well, I love our new names and I love _you_ “ Kurt exclaims.

“I love you too, even when you haven’t even tear a little all night!” Blaine states, wiping his tears

“Well, dear husband. Tonight I won’t cry! No sir! Crying at weddings is so overrated! Besides I’m extremely happy! I can’t cry right now! Why would I? If my heart is just jumping with joy!” Kurt says smiling broadly. “Let’s dance instead okay? I want to impress everybody with our new dance moves!” He exclaims already grabbing his husband’s hand and pulling him by the tie, sashaying his way to the dance floor.

Blaine laughs a little and leaning over to kiss Kurt, he says, “You’re the cutest thing in the whole world! Did you know that?”

Kurt nods as he kisses back Blaine. And the two lovebirds make their way to the center of the dance floor, where the rest of their friends and family are still dancing their bodies off.

The group of high school friends are gather by a table, just chatting and catching up while they all rest a bit from all the dancing. Wesley looks into his girlfriend’s beautiful brown eyes and gives her a soft nod encouraging her to speak up.

Rachel grabs her glass and hits it softly with a fork to drag the attention to her. “Your attention please! I have some great news to share with all of you guys!” She exclaims excited.

Mercedes’ jaw drops as she says, “You’re pregnant!”

Wesley’s face goes pale and Rachel, laughing a little, replies, “No Mercedes, I am not…next month…”

Brittany pipes in and trying to guess, she asks, “It’s Christmas?”

Rachel laughs and Sam, not wanting to lose the chance to try to guess too, speaks up, “New Years?”

Rachel shakes her head. “No guys! Wait! Let me finish…next month, is the screening of my T.V. Show! An we start airing on January 2016!”

“What!? Why haven’t you told me?” Santana exclaims a bit offended that the other brunette hadn’t shared the news with her before telling everyone else.

“I told her not to tell until you all guys were together.” Wesley replies as a matter of explanation for Rachel’s silence.

The group starts to congratulate her and Wes for the upcoming release date, but Rachel adds, “But I’m not finished yet….”

“There’s more?” Tina asks.

Rachel nods and smiling playfully she exclaims, “You guys are all invited to the screening! And by all I mean Madison, Naomi, Cooper, Angela and Shane too!”

“Invited? How?” Quinn asks knowing for a fact that for that kind of events the networks usually invited just the press, some important guests and the actors and actresses.

“We’re the stars of the show!” Wesley says as a matter of explanation. “Rachel very determined requested to have at least four rows of seats for the main event and I asked for two more so there’s plenty of room for everybody…”

All the guys get excited and start planning the upcoming trip to L.A. Kurt and Blaine just look at each other with some sad looks on their faces.

“Sorry guys…” Kurt says, “…But I think we could not attend. You do remember we just got married, right? We’ll be in our honeymoon!” He explains.

Rachel shakes her head and says, “Don’t worry Kurt, you’ll be home by then…the screening will be in the last week of the year so…Wes and I were thinking that maybe we could seize the opportunity and spend the last day of the year together…”

Blaine and Kurt immediately smile because they are going to be home by that time.

Puck claps excited. “Sounds like a plan! Now let’s plan this new trip!”

They all smile and start to plan the new sudden trip to L.A.

The party continues for hours, everyone’s having fun and the married couple seems to be ecstatic. Elliott walks by the main door coming out from the bathrooms and stumbles across Tara, the venue lady.

“Mr. Gilbert?” She asks, using her business like demeanor.

“Just Elliott, what is it? You’re Tara right? The lady coordinating the whole thing isn’t it?” He asks intrigued.

“Yeah, that’s me. Ummmm… I was wondering if you’ve seen Kurt or Blaine? I’ve been looking for them, but they are nowhere to be seen!” Tara says, still looking around to see if she catches a glimpse of the happy couple.

“Hmmmm they were at one of the tables, why?” Elliott replies.

“Just to let them know that the limousine is here, they can now go whenever they want…” She adds smiling friendly.

“Don’t worry, I’ll let them know. Thanks…” Elliott replies already making his way through the dancing crowd to look for his friends.

“Cooper, have you seen you brother?” The member of _One Three Hill_ asks as soon as he catches Cooper dancing with Angela, the sexy Latina he brought as his date.

“No…why?” Cooper asks passing his hand through his hair, removing some sweat from his forehead in the process.

“The limousine is here, the venue coordinator told me that they can go if they want…” Elliott explains.

“Oh let’s find them then…” Cooper immediately says, and after escorting his date back to the table, he and Elliott start to look for the newlyweds.

Five minutes later, at the far end of the dance floor and next to the bar, Elliott spots Blaine.

“Blaine!” He yells, making the hazel-eyed, and recently married man, to turn around. “Where’s Kurt?” He asks, but he doesn’t need an answer because Kurt sticks his head from behind Blaine, he was seated at one of the bar tools apparently resting his legs.

“I’m glad you two are together…hmmm…the limo is here!” Elliott announces.

“What limo?” Kurt asks confused.

“The one that’s going to take you both to the airport?” Cooper chirps in. “Seriously Kurt, you planned this whole thing and you don’t remember the small details?”

“Well that’s because I didn’t ask for a limo…” Kurt explains.

“But I did…” Blaine interferes smiling at his husband. “I wanted us to have that crossed from the wedding cliche list too, they are even going to write the _‘just married’_ stuff at the back of the car…” Blaine says smiling and hoping that his idea doesn’t turn out into their first disagreement as a married couple.

“You know you’re adorable right?” Kurt adds smiling all lovely at his husband. He loved the idea.

The two boys immediately kiss, and Elliott and Cooper have to clear their throats to remind them that they are still there.

Blaine blushes a little and taking a deep breath to fill again his lungs, he says, “Thanks guys, ummmm…we will go in a minute, but before…” He adds taking his husband’s hand. “There’s something very important that I need to do…” He adds winking at his husband.

Kurt frowns getting confused and looks back and forth between Blaine and the two best men. Cooper and Elliott shrug because they don’t know what Blaine is talking about. According to the schedule, the only thing remaining to do was grabbing their bags from the loft and heading to the airport.

Blaine just chuckles a little noticing the small frown on his husband’s face and releasing Kurt’s hand, he makes his way to the stage. Kurt’s eyes open wide, because he doesn’t need to read minds to know what his husband is about to do.

Blaine reaches the stage, takes a microphone and positions himself in front of the big black piano. “Your attention please…” He says, causing the entire room to go silent.

“My husband and I are about to leave because believe it or not, we have a flight to catch. But before that happens, we wanted to take some time to thank you all for being here tonight. We hope you keep enjoying yourselves for a few more hours…I heard the party can end until 7am.” He says laughing a little. “I’m sure our talented friends can keep you entertained with some songs, so don’t worry…”

“Anyways, you all must be wondering, _‘what is he doing there seated in front of the piano?’_ Well…I’m here because I have something very, very important to do…” He adds looking straight into the pair of bright blue eyes that haven’t blinked since his husband took the stage. “Kurt…babe, did you really think I would not sing you a song today?” Blaine teases.

Kurt laughs a little as he makes his way near the stage to have a better view of his husband’s performance.

The illumination of the place changes with just a tiny dim coming from the small centerpieces of all the tables. Blaine takes a deep breath and brushing his fingers across the piano keys, the song starts to flow from his heart and through his hands, and the very first notes of a piano version of _Amazed_ by Lonestar start to sound around the place.

_(Blaine)…Every time our eyes meet. This feeling inside me is almost more than I can take…Baby, when you touch me I can feel how much you love me. And it just blows me away…_

Blaine starts to sing while he looks directly into Kurt’s eyes, trying to tell him with one look how much he loves him. The blue-eyed man smiles in return and tries to pay attention to the lyrics of the song, because he knows they were chosen specifically for this moment.

_(Blaine)…I’ve never been this close to anyone or anything. I can hear your thoughts, I can see your dreams…_

The rest of the guests start to make a circle around Kurt as they gather to have a better view of the performance and scene taking place between the newlyweds. Kurt can’t keep his eyes away from the piano man, his piano man.

_(Blaine)…I don’t know how you do what you do, I’m so in love with you. It just keeps getting better. I wanna spend the rest of my life with you by my side, forever and ever…_

Blaine pours his heart in the song using his voice and his talent on the piano to make the whole performance more emotional. He’s no longer crying but due to all the crying, his voice sounds different, raspy. _‘Sexy…’_ Kurt thinks to himself.

_(Blaine)…Every little thing that you do…Baby, I’m amazed by you…_

When Blaine sings the _amazed_ part of the song, he very deliberately winks at his husband who just smiles in return as he melts for the man who’s serenading him. Blaine’s voice has always been, and always will be his weakness. His kryptonite.

_(Blaine)…The smell of your skin, the taste of your kiss, the way you whisper in the dark. Your hair all around me, baby, you surround me…You touch every place in my heart…_

All the people gathered around the dance floor and in front of the stage are looking at the newlywed couple with big smiles upon their faces. Having them know for many years, they all know how important this little moments are for them and how every time they sing to each other, they seem to put more than their hearts on it.

_(Blaine)…Oh, it feels like the first time, every time. I wanna spend the whole night in your eyes…_

During the whole time Blaine has been singing, he hasn’t look to anything but Kurt. He hasn’t even look down to the piano to see if he’s playing the right keys, his eyes are fixed to the man standing in the middle of the dance floor.

_(Blaine)…I don’t know how you do what you do, I’m so in love with you. It just keeps getting better. I wanna spend the rest of my life with you by my side, forever and ever…_

Kurt has been looking at him nonstop too. And deep down he has been trying to control the flood of emotions that are building inside him. A part of him wants to run and stop the performance right there just to be able to kiss the man at the piano, while the other part just wants to stay there and watch him sing all night long.

_(Blaine)…Every little thing that you do…Baby, I’m amazed by you…_

Blaine knows that he’s hitting home with every word he’s singing, so taking full advantage on the fact that he knows his husband better than anyone, he belts his heart out in the last part of the song.

_(Blaine)…Every little thing that you do, I’m so in love with you. It just keeps getting better. I wanna spend the rest of my life with you by my side, forever and ever. Every little thing that you do, oh, every little thing that you do…Baby, I’m amazed by you…_

The song comes to an end and while Blaine is playing the last notes on the piano he whispers, “I love you” Through the microphone.

Kurt, unable to keep his emotions at bay, mouths a clear _‘I love you’_ as a single, tiny and almost invisible tear rolls down his face. He thinks nobody noticed it, but the smile on Blaine’s face says otherwise.

Kurt and Blaine finally say goodbye to every single person in the room and while holding hands, they make their way to main entrance of the hotel where a white limousine is waiting for them. Kurt laughs when he notices the _‘Just married’_ sign written on the back window.

“You weren’t kidding, right?” Kurt says, darting his husband a playful look.

“I warned you…” Blaine replies laughing. “Now let’s go home…”

The two boys get into the fancy limousine and make themselves comfortable in the back seat. Kurt resting his head on Blaine’s shoulder and Blaine resting his on Kurt’s hair.

“Maybe this is the moment when I confess that I also asked the driver to take us around Central Park before heading home…” Blaine says trying not to laugh.

Kurt raises his head and rolling his eyes playfully, he adds, “You’re impossible, did you know that?” Blaine just nods as they both restore their previous comfortable positions.

After twenty minutes of driving around Central Park, the limo finally takes the Morgan avenue and makes its way towards Bushwick. Half an hour later, the boys finally arrive to their home and between sweet kisses and giggles they climb the stairs until they reach the door of the loft.

“Blaine…” Kurt suddenly says.

“Yes?” Blaine asks distracted as he takes out the keys from his pocket.

“I want to cross another thing from the wedding cliche list you mentioned before…” Kurt explains his thoughts out loud.

“Okay…what is it?” Blaine asks confused, but Kurt doesn’t even give him the time to think, because last thing he knows Kurt is carrying him bridal style.

Blaine burst into laughter and between giggles he says, “Good luck trying to open the door while carrying me…”

“You’re going to open the door for me of course…” Kurt adds laughing and rolling his eyes.

Blaine laughs too, but quickly helps his husband to slide the door. Kurt, still carrying Blaine, makes his way inside their home and exclaims, “Welcome home Mr. Anderson-Hummel!” As he puts Blaine down.

Blaine breathes a smile and looking at Kurt’s excited eyes, he repeats, “Welcome home Mr. Anderson-Hummel…”

“It feels different, right? Like grown up…” Kurt states

“Yeah…now let’s go change and grab our stuff, we still have a plane to catch…” Blaine adds already walking to their room.

Kurt nods and follows his husband to the room. Once inside Kurt quickly opens the closet and takes out the previously selected clothes he had chosen for them to wear after the wedding. Blaine smiles and just takes his selected outfit and places it on his side of the bed.

Blaine starts to undress and Kurt walks closer and grabbing his husband’s shoulder he whispers, “Can I help with that?” Using his sexy voice.

Blaine swallows very slowly, because that voice always makes him shiver. “I-I don’t think that’s a good idea…” He finally adds.

“Why not?” Kurt asks seductively.

“Because we won’t just undress each other and you know it…I thought you said you wanted us to have a special first night at husbands and-and…oh God!” He trails off as Kurt slowly unties his bowtie. “If we continue doing that then…one thing will lead to the other and we will be late and probably miss our flight and…Ummm… It’s not going to be as romantic as you wanted it to be…”

“Okay…” Kurt whispers. “Fair enough, but at least I can watch right?”

Blaine laughs loudly, because he can’t recall the moment that the little shy boy he once met, turned into this confident and sexy man. “Yes my love, you can watch all you want.”

Kurt smirks and takes a step aside as Blaine continues to remove the various layers of his clothes. “You know?” Blaine suddenly says, “I think it’s only fair if you start to undress too so I can watch too…” He adds giving Kurt a cute wink.

“Okay…” Kurt replies practically ripping off his clothes and making Blaine to laugh loudly.

“That was sexy, a little too quick for my personal delight, but sexy…” The hazel-eyed man says placing his suit on top of the bed and suddenly noticing the white envelope his dad had given him in the morning. “Oh! I almost forgot!” He exclaims

“What? That you decided to ignored my requests and changed our flight so we could have sex tonight? Please say yes…” Kurt replies playfully.

Between giggles, Blaine says, “No…Sadly no, but we have a new wedding gift!” He says handing Kurt the envelope. “My dad gave it to me this morning.”

Intrigued, Kurt grabs the envelope and opens it, gasping the moment his eyes look at the amount of money written on the check. “Oh my God! What’s all this money for?”

Blaine smiles excited. “For our honeymoon! He said we use this money for the trip and that -I’m quoting- _‘we save what we have for his future grandkids college’_ ”

Kurt looks at his husband’s eyes trying to see if he’s lying. “You’re joking right?”

Blaine just shakes his head. “Wait! Did he really say that? Really? Grandkids? Are you sure he said specifically _that_ word?”

Blaine just nods smiling as he sees how the news sink in his husband’s mind. “Wow! That’s really something…I think I appreciate that word more than the money…”

“Me too…believe me that me too.” Blaine replies with a smile.

In that moment Kurt realizes that he has an extra wedding present too, so putting on his shirt and jeans very quickly he adds, “Wait…my dad also gave me something for us, I don’t know what it is, because it’s closed. He just said, we should open it together…” Kurt says walking to the living room where he left the small box.

When Kurt returns to the room, Blaine is already dressed and lacing his shoes. Kurt takes a seat at the far end of the bed and pats the spot next to him so Blaine can join him. Together, the happy couple, opens the box and the moment their eyes look at the content, Kurt gasps and Blaine says, “A letter?”

Kurt nods slightly, but his mind is still in shock. After some seconds that feel like hours, Kurt finds his voice again and says “It’s not just a letter Blaine, it’s a letter from my mom…”

Blaine’s eyes open widely in surprise. Kurt looks at the letter again, and his heart skip several beats. It clearly says, _‘To my son…and son in law…’_ with a beautiful handwriting that Kurt can’t stop looking at.

“How?” Kurt whispers confused as to why he has a letter from his mother in the first place and most importantly why it says _son in law_. _‘How did she know?’_ He thinks to himself. Millions of questions going through his mind in the moment.

Blaine who was asking himself the exact same things, smiles knowing how important this moment if for his husband and just says, “There’s just one way to find out…” pointing to the letter still untouched inside the box.

Kurt grabs the letter and with trembling hands he flips it over and opens it. Before his husband starts reading, Blaine grabs Kurt’s hand and whispers, “Remember that you’re not alone, okay?”

Kurt nods and taking a deep breath he starts to read out loud, _“Kurt, I know that you must have a lot of questions going on in that head of yours right now and I promise you that I’ll answer every single one of them, but first let me say something. Congratulations my baby boy! If your father gave you this, then it means that I was right and that you’re happily married to the man of your dreams. How did I know? I’m your mother Kurt! I always knew! And I really hope that my son-in-law is right beside you reading these lines, because I have some things to tell him too.”_ Kurt reads as tears start to roll down his face.

“You want me to continue?” Blaine asks, looking how his husband is almost choking in his own tears.

Kurt just nods and Blaine, grabbing his husband’s hand with his left hand and the letter with the right, continues reading.

 _“I know that you are probably wondering -why did she write me a letter for my wedding and not for my graduation? Or for all of my birthdays?- and well, the answer is simple Kurt. I couldn’t. Writing these lines is very painful for me, physically and mentally. I thought about this for a long time and after struggling with myself, I decided to just write this single letter.”_ Blaine reads and takes some air to continue.

_“When I knew I was going to die the only thing I regretted about my life was not being able to be there with you the day you said ‘I do’. That’s why I chose this day, Kurt. Your wedding day! There’s so much I want to say, so much I want to tell you, but now I find myself struggling with the words and I don’t even know where to begin. Maybe I can start by saying that I love you and that I’m so proud of being your mother. I know this may sound presumptuous, but I think that by writing you this letter, is the best way for me to feel like I am part of your big day too…”_

“You are…” Kurt whispers to the air. The tears rolling uncontrollably down his face as he sobs loudly.

_“Now I want to introduce myself to my son in law. Hi there, my name is Elizabeth and I’m your mother (in law). Whoever you are and whatever your name is, know that I already love you. I know that we will never get the chance to meet each other, but just know that if my baby boy decided to marry you, then he must really love you and therefore I love you too. And I’m truly happy for you both. Please, take care of him and make him feel loved every single day. My baby needs to hear that he’s loved everyday, you know? He was born a romantic, just like me! So make sure he feels like he’s living his own fairytale. Cherish and protect him above all, and when the problems of marriage come and he starts to act like his father and gets into his private bubble -you would be surprised to know how much alike they are- just remind him that you’re there with him, and he’ll let you in. I can promise you that. I have some experience with the Hummel men.”_

Kurt and Blaine laugh a little as Blaine continues, _“Dying is something that changes your life forever, and I’m not going to write all the details surrounding mine, because I’m sure you both already know them. Though I do want to share some things with you. I don’t know how much time I have left, it can be weeks, months, maybe a year, but today I realized that what I thought were the important things in life, no longer are. The trivial things are now boring and I find myself longing for the essential moments of life. I think about how I met your dad (and dad in law), how handsome he looked the day that we married, I remember the first time I held that little body of yours Kurt and how many nights I’ve spent looking at your blue eyes, losing myself in the vastness of them. And that’s when I realized I’d never experienced a purer form of happiness”_

Blaine clears his throat and continues. He’s trying with all his will, not to cry too. He knows he needs to be the strong one right now for his husband. _“I’m sharing this with you both, because I want you to know that despite my impending fate, I feel blessed. Why? Because I’ve been able to live a happy and full life. I met the love of my live and I brought an angel to this world. I think that’s the greatest gifts of all, don’t you agree? However I can’t help but sometimes feel scared. I try to be brave, but thinking about the things I’m going to miss in your life really scares me Kurt. Though I know I shouldn’t, I find myself dwelling on the fact that I’ll not be there for you in the important days, like today, and I can’t help but feel afraid that someday in the future, I’ll just became a distant memory…”_

“Never…”Kurt whispers.

_“So before that happens I‘ll give you both some advices for your future life. If you love each other now, then love each other forever. Love is a blessing! Cherish it! Make each other laugh, spent all the time you can together -life is too short-, take long walks with no clear direction in mind, ride some bikes, play some sports, curl up on the couch, bed and every single corner of your home; make each other breakfast in bed, but don’t spoil yourselves. Take turns at the kitchen, you’ll discover how funny it is to share some cooking time. Kiss each other, each and every day, and don’t forget to make love, sex is fun, but it’s better when you do it with love. So make lots and lots of love. And every time you can, watch movies until you two fall asleep. There’s no better way to wake up the next morning than with a smile and a terrible pain in the neck and back due to the uncomfortable, but oddly lovely position. When you two learn to enjoy those little moments, life will become nothing but a pure happy journey. A journey you won’t want to end…”_

“She’s so sweet…” Blaine murmurs.

“The sweetest…” Kurt replies between tears.

_“Now, let’s move to the important stuff…When you two decide to start a family, then do it with the thought in mind that children are forever and that no matter what you two feel or not, your children happiness will become your number one priority. Having kids is amazing, so when your time comes, love them, help them with their homework, kiss their scrapped knees when they fall, play with their hair -even if they don’t like it-, tuck them in bed, make them lunch, support them in their decision, play with them all kind of games, adore them, but most importantly assure them that you’ll always be there no matter what, and help them grow into kind, independent adults…what you give them in love, will return tenfold in time, when they have their own kids. You’ll see…”_

Blaine makes a pause and takes a deep breath to keep reading. _“Anyways, that’s all I can say to you on this day, so I hope it helps you both to start this new life.. Know that I love you and that I really hope that you two have an amazing life full of happiness, health and eternal love. With all my heart…Your mother. Elizabeth Hummel.”_

Kurt wipes the tears that can’t stop rolling down his cheeks and looks at his husband. Blaine, at this point, is wiping a little too. “This is the best wedding present ever…” Kurt whispers.

Blaine nods and kisses his husband’s cheek. He’s speechless and just enjoying this unexpected blessing he just received. Now he knows where did Kurt get that sweet, kind and lovely side of his.

After some time, and once the tears were dry on both their eyes, the boys realize they are late to catch their flight. Kurt looks at his clock and yells all alarmed, “Blaine! Airport! The flight! it’s late! We need to hurry!”

Blaine jumps from the couch and runs to grab the bags that were already stacked by the door. “Do you have the tickets?” He asks to his husband.

Kurt nods and flashes the tickets before putting them safely inside his satchel.

“Okay…then, are you ready?” Blaine asks.

Kurt nods excited and lets out a _‘More than ready…’_ as he makes his way to the door.

Blaine grins and carrying some bags, he exclaims “Hawaii here we come!”

Kurt laughs and grabs the remaining bags. Blaine stops in his tracks and before stepping out of the loft he adds, “…and by the way hubby, don’t you think I didn’t notice that small, tiny, little tear you tried to wipe when I sang. I thought you said you weren’t going to cry at the wedding…”

Kurt laughs and hits his husband’s back. “Oh shut up!”

Blaine laughs too and starts to say, “That’s dome–” but Kurt shuts him up with a kiss.

“No it’s not…now shut up and let’s go!” He exclaims while he closes the loft’s door and the newlywed couple makes her way to the limousine.

After some minutes, the car moves forward with the words _‘Just married’_ still displayed on the back, as it slowly gets lost in the traffic of the city.


	12. New Directions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on the Glee Fan Project…Kurt and Blaine finally got married! Congrats guys! After months of planning the dream wedding, the happy couple finally said ‘I do’ at a beautiful venue in New York City. The whole gang plus some faces we thought had disappeared (including some Warblers), got together to celebrate the newlyweds. Feeling the love from the wedding brought up feelings in each couple as they all individually talked about taking the next step in their relationships. Things seem to be getting serious! During the reception, Rachel shared some very special news with all her friends and now they all are getting ready to go to sunny L.A. to be at the screening of Rachel’s show…Awesome right? And that’s what you missed on Glee!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s our twelfth episode! This is the beginning of the end (Don’t worry we still have Ep13), so grab your Kleenex because this episode is is the first part of our goodbye. As you already now we have the ‘That’s Oh So Rachel’ screening in the sunny L.A and the whole gang is going to be there, what is it going to happen? Are they spending the holidays together? Find out and read what we have in store for this episode! As usual at the top there's a link to the Episode 12 playlist of songs, in case we have included a song that you may not have heard of. Remember that we wrote the characters singing these songs with their own vocal arrangements in mind that’s why some of these songs are covers and some are the originals. We hope you enjoy them!

[Episode 12 playlist](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv_rvGfxbXKOU4JuqmBWsHk3mCQdE18hZ)

Brushing her hands off after finishing the last bite of her BLT sandwich, minus the _‘B’_ of course, Rachel stands up from her spot on the sofa and makes her way into the kitchen. Walking through the makeshift doorway separating the dining room from the kitchen, she goes to place her small plate in the sink. Immediately, she notices a dark blue coffee mug sitting in the middle of the sink with the small remains of leftover coffee sitting in the bottom of the cup. Puffing out a deep sigh, Rachel grinds her teeth trying to keep herself cool as the agitation within her rises. _‘How hard is it to rise your damn cup!’_ She yells to herself in her head.

After washing her plate, and Wesley’s coffee mug Rachel walks the short distance to the two white paneled doors that hide their laundry room. Next to the doors she notices the over flowing trash can that sits between the double doors and the dividing kitchen wall. She lets out another groan when she sees the last thing piled on top of the full trash can, all the empty boxes of that set of products Wesley ordered on Amazon yesterday. _‘First the dish, now he can’t empty the trash when it’s full either!’_ Frustrated, she decides to ignore it for now and proceed to their laundry knowing there are a few items that they needed washed for tomorrow’s Christmas dinner.

Opening the paneled doors, she pulls down the white wicker basket full to the top with a mixture of her and Wesley’s clothing. She picks up a light tan pair of men dockers and immediately hears the spare change jiggling inside the pockets. Sticking her hand into the pocket, she pulls out a hand full of coins and slams them on top of the washer before throwing the pants down. “That it!” She mumbles under her breath as she turns around and marches off in the direction of her shared bedroom in search of her boyfriend, making sure to stomp her feet every step of the way.

Rachel pushes the bedroom door open with a force she didn’t realize she had causing the door to hit the door stopper attached to the wall behind it. Taking a quick look around the room she notices it’s empty of the one person she is in a heated search for. As she goes to turn around an exit the room she hears the faint sound of water running. Traveling further into the room the sound of Wesley brushing his teeth becomes more apparent. With a determined scowl on her face, she storms into the bathroom attached to the left of the bedroom while yelling her boyfriend’s name. “Wesley Grey!”

Freezing with the toothbrush still in his mouth, hand held in mid brush stroke, and foam still evident around his lips, Wesley looks towards his girlfriend with wide eyes. “Wha-” He mumbles out. He doesn’t dare to make any movements. By the sound of Rachel’s voice and the use of his full name he knows he’s in trouble. The issue was he couldn’t for the life of him, remember what he could have done. “Whada du.” His words come out slightly jumbled since he still had his green toothbrush wedged between his teeth and his cheek.

“Really!” Rachel rolls her eyes as she crosses her arms, “What did you do? What did you do?!” She repeats, clearly aggravated. “Really Wesley!”

Sighing, Wesley takes the toothbrush from his mouth, spitting in the sink before rinsing his mouth, as well as the toothbrush, and returning it back to its rightful place in the ceramic holder. He wipes his mouth off on a bathroom hand towel before drying off his hands and placing it on back on the rack. That of course earns him another huff from the brunette.

He places his hand on the sink and turns his whole body to look towards Rachel. With a raised eyebrow he asks, “Yes, please tell me! What did I do?”

Rachel squints her eyes, narrowing them towards her boyfriend, which only confuses him more. He’s not sure what’s been going on between them. He thought everything had been going great, and he doesn’t remember having any specific disagreement or anything that could be causing their relationship any trouble. But lately it seems that anything and everything he does seems to be wrong.

Letting out a loud and exaggerated sigh, Rachel drops her hands and turns on her heels, starting to walk away.

Following the brunette’s steps, Wesley internally rolls his eyes at Rachel’s antics. “You know what, I see you’re looking to pick a fight but, I’m not playing along this time. Not on Christmas’ eve!” He uses a stern voice, but still not raising it to any higher octaves. That’s not how he works. Yelling will get them nowhere, he knows this and Rachel’s little tissy fit wasn’t going to change that for him. But that didn’t mean he wasn’t getting frustrated with the constant fighting Rachel was trying to pick everyday for the past few weeks.

The two now stand in the middle of the living room, both with crossed arms and determined to stand their ground. Wesley still has no idea what he even did to make Rachel so upset, but if she wasn’t going to tell him then how could he fix it? Not wanting to continue arguing with his stubborn girlfriend, Wesley turns around and murmuring under his breath he says, “You know what? I still don’t read minds, so when you feel like talking, let me know. I’ll be in the livingroom…”

By now Rachel couldn’t even remember what she was so angry about in the first place. Her emotions just seem to be like a web of confusion in her mind. She wasn’t even sure if it was really Wesley she was mad at anymore, but she could feel her blood boil under her skin with the words that just left her boyfriend’s lips and before she knows it, she picks up the plush throw pillow from the couch and hurls it towards the tall man.

The pillow softly thuds Wesley on the left side of his face, stunning him for a moment. It takes him a few more seconds to register what really just happened. Once the realization sunk in he couldn’t help the anger that starts bubbling up in his chest. Taking a deep breath, trying to keep his cool he questions through gritted teeth, “What’s your problem?”

“What’s my problem? You really want to know? Well, you are my problem! Everyday at work I have to smile and pretend that I don’t care about your crazy ex girlfriend spending all her day flirting with you; to later come home and find that you still don’t empty your pockets before putting your dirty clothes in the laundry, can’t rinse out your dishes, never take out the trash when it’s over flowing, and you will never learn how to put the toilet paper roll on right!” Rachel yells.

“Have I given you any reason not to trust me?” Wesley questions curiously, taking a step forward towards Rachel, reaching out trying to place a hand on his girlfriend’s shoulder. He now thinks he has an idea what’s really be going on as he notices the mention of his ex girlfriend along with the long list of irrelevant silly stuff Rachel threw into her rant, probably trying to hide the real reason behind her anger.

Still reeling in her anger, Rachel takes a step back, dodging Wesley’s attempt at calming her down. Throwing her arms up she huffs out, “No, but still you don’t empty your pockets before putting your dirty clothes in the laundry, can’t rise out your dishes, or take out the trash! And putting the toilet paper it’s not that difficult Wesley!”

Wes, a bit tired of her attitude, rolls his eyes and slightly losing his temper he yells, “You know what? Yes! I never empty my pockets before putting the dirty clothes in the laundry, can’t rise the freaking dishes. I forget about the trash and probably I will never learn how to put the toilet paper roll on right! So I think it’s better if I just go…Right now you’re not in the mood to talk like mentally healthy people do!”

After hearing Wesley yelling at her Rachel’s mind paralyzed. He had never, ever, yelled at her before and yet, here she was looking into those angry blue eyes and listening to him calling her crazy. “Did you just call me crazy?”

Wes with a very tired expression, just grabs his car keys and walking away he says, “If the shoe fits…” Closing the door behind him and leaving the brunette standing alone at the living room.

Brittany lies on top of the comforter that’s spread over the queen sized bed, playing with the ends over her long blonde hair and watching as Santana moves about the room getting dressed. There’s a knock heard from the front door and Brittany immediately jumps up from her spot and already half way down the hall she yells back, “I’ll get it!”

Quickly reaching the door the tall blonde unlocks the dead bolt and pulls the door open revealing Kurt and Blaine standing there with a few bags draped over their shoulders.

“I’ve missed my Unicorn!” She exclaims pulling Kurt in for a bone crushing hug.

“I’ve missed you too Britt, even though I saw you a little less than five weeks ago.” Kurt replies, giving his friend a soft pat to the back of her shoulder; a little overwhelmed by the effusive welcoming hug.

Stepping back from the hug, Brittany switches and hugs Blaine using a similar effusive energy. “Hello Blaine Warbler!”

“It’s nice to see you again Britt.” Blaine exclaims hugging back the blonde woman.

Brittany smiles widely and steps back, motioning for the two boys to enter the apartment. Kurt steps in first with Blaine following close behind.

As the boys take in their surroundings of the never before seen apartment, Brittany turns around to close the door. After turning the necessary locks she faces the boys again, “By the way welcome to the married club! How does it feel to be married?”

Sharing a playful smirk, Kurt and Blaine lean their shoulders into one another as they both say, “Great!” at the same time causing the blonde to giggle a little at the cuteness of the newlyweds.

“You sound so funny together…” Brittany says, “But please leave your bags here, I want to give you the grand tour…” She fakes an accent as she was Vanna White’s showing off the house before directing the two men to the living room.

Looking around the small apartment, Kurt says, “I love what you guys did with the place, a very californian style with a maverick touch…I approve!” He states turning around and looking at the sofa he has in front of him, he adds, “Oh! I love the plush cushions! Very eclectic chic! Bravo!”

”I have no idea what any of that means but, yay!” Brittany says, genuinely happy for the great review she just received for the decoration of their home.

“Thank You!” Santana yells from the bedroom at the other side of the hall. The sound of heels tapping against the wood floor announce that she’s near. Santana appears wearing a very tight blue and red patterned dress showcasing her upper thighs and adorned with a pair of black pumps.

After the brief hello’s the girls take the boys on a tour around the apartment which is all decorated nicely and with a lot of Christmas stuff. “You girls take Christmas seriously.” Blaine murmurs looking at some of the decoration.

Santana sends him a quick confused look, wondering if he knew her wife at all and it’s then when she remembers that he wasn’t at McKinley to witness the extent of Brittany’s love for Christmas. It was true that the tall blonde now knows that Santa isn’t real, but since then she has found a new spirit in Christmas and with it being their first Christmas as wives, Brittany insisted they go all out on decorations to celebrate.

They travel further into the apartment and down the short hallway where there’s a door to the guests bathroom on the left side of the hallway and the extra bedroom’s door on the right.

“This is going to be your room! I hope you guys like it! I decorated this place myself!” Brittany says, proud of herself, while rocking back and forth from her heels to her toes.

Blaine and Kurt step in and their eyes widen in surprise. Brittany, still smiling, asks excited, “So…What do you guys think?”

Standing from outside the hallway looking in, Blaine shifts his gaze over to his husband. Blaine knows, the moment he sees Kurt sucking his lips in an attempt to hide a frown or laughing, exactly what he is thinking about the colorful and bright decoration. So trying to be a polite guest and a supportive husband, Blaine clears his throat and says, “It’s…Hmmm….Very colorful! Thanks Britt!”

Brittany’s smile grows causing her cheeks to bunch and her eyes to squint slightly. “I knew you guys were going to love this place! It’s Sanny’s favorite place too!” She informs her two friends, remembering the day she finished the decorations and let Santana see the room for the first time since getting permission to decorate one room of the house by herself. Santana’s eyes meet Brittany’s and loving the excited smile on her wife’s face, she immediately knows she made the right decision because she’d take that smile and a _‘unique’_ room over the opposite any day. So with a smile, she simply sends Brittany a wink and nods in agreement.

Kurt remains silent as he’s still trying to hide the smile that’s threatening to explode in a big laughter. Blaine seizing the opportunity, chirps in and says, “Well, I’ll go and fetch our bags so we can settle ourselves…”

“Let me help you.” Brittany immediately volunteers walking out the room with Blaine and leaving Santana and Kurt alone.

Once they are alone, Kurt can’t help but start to laugh uncontrollably. Santana rolls her eyes and pointing a menacing finger towards her friend she says, “Don’t you dare to laugh Lady-Hummel, I mean Lady-Anderson-Hummel! Don’t you know the meaning of the word compromising? Well, this is it!” She snaps pointing to the oddly decorated room.

Kurt takes a few deep breaths and tries to settle his laughter, but as his eyes shift from the room to Santana he can’t help but double over and continue laughing. Santana rolls her eyes once again in annoyance and walks away leaving Kurt laughing with tears in his eyes.

Blaine and Brittany walk back into the room with a few extra bags on each shoulder and find Kurt laughing hysterically leaning against the vanity.

Brittany frowns confused as to why the blue-eyed man is laughing like a looney. “Are you okay Kurt?” She asks, but before Kurt can say anything, Santana pokes her head back through the door and pointing her finger at him, says, “Don’t you dare! Or I’ll tell your husband about Bruce!”

Laughing again, Kurt shakes his head and and between chuckles he breathes out, “Don’t worry Santana, he already knows all about him…” He says winking at his husband in a playful way.

Brittany looks back and forth between her wife and the two men standing in front of her. “Okay, and who’s Bruce?” She asks, feeling like she missed something important.

“My husband’s lover…” Blaine replies trying not to laugh an feigning nonchalance.

Brittany’s jaw drops dramatically and with a really concerned expression, she turns around to face Kurt. “Oh my God! Are you cheating on your husband?”

Shaking his head and knowing it’s better to explain the things before they turn into a big misunderstanding, Kurt explains, “No, I’m not Britt. You know me, I would never, ever do that! Bruce is just a pillow, don’t worry…”

Smiling clearly relieved, Brittany places her hand on her heart as if she almost had a heart attack, before saying, “I’m glad to hear that, because I really like Blaine Warbler…”

After Brittany and Blaine set the two men’s bags inside the room next to the bed, Brittany continues with the _‘mini’_ grand tour of the small apartment. She shows them the bathroom, a quick peek at her and Santana’s bedroom, the dining room and the kitchen before circling back into the living room where her, Kurt and Blaine now sit while Santana walks towards the kitchen offering them drinks.

“Do you guys want a drink, we’ve got whiskey, vodka, and juice. Pick your poison?”

Kurt’s eyebrows shot up at the sound of the available drinks, “My goodness Santana, did you become an alcoholic lately or something?”

“I was kidding Barbie, we really only have juice. I just knew your uptight ass wasn’t going to want those other drinks anyways.” The Latina quickly pulls down four cups and pours some Hawaiian Punch into each glass before balancing the drinks in her hands and heading back to the living room. She distributes the glasses and then takes a seat on the armrest of the chair her wife currently occupied.

“You guys want to see some pictures from our honeymoon? Kurt says we definitely topped yours!” Blaine says excited.

Santana laughs remembering the email she sent some months ago and rolling her eyes, she states, “I really doubt that…”

“Oh, Santana…Sorry to disappoint you, but we did! You should’ve never challenged us…” Kurt says, “We, the Anderson-Hummel, never, ever say no to a challenge!”

Santana playfully scoffs in doubt as the four friends walk to the living room and start to chat about their respective dreamy honeymoons.

After an hour or so, the conversation is suddenly interrupted by a phone call. Brittany’s phone rings and running toward the dining table, where she had left the small device, the blonde woman picks up her phone and immediately smiles at the display.

“Hey there Crusher!” She yells answering the call.

Kurt and Blaine look at each other confused by the strange nickname as the blonde continues her conversation. “Yeah, yeah don’t worry, okay? I’ll be there in 10 minutes tops, bye.” She hangs up.

“I have to go…” Brittany informs to her friends and wife. “Crusher needs me, I’ll see you later guys.” She adds grabbing her keys and walking away.

“Who the hell is Crusher?” Kurt asks intrigued and having a hard time repeating the strange nickname.

Santana laughs and with a shrug she replies, “Wesley, Rachel’s boyfriend…They are _‘besties’._ Britt started calling him Crusher because she said calling him Wesley just reminded her of Wesley Crusher from Star Trek anyways.” Santana chuckles with a slight shrug of her shoulders. “I didn’t even know she watched Star Trek…” She trails off with a smile still evident on her lips as she ponders her wife’s adorable mind.

Blaine laughs and asks, “How did that happen, them becoming friends I mean?”

“I don’t know, but they have been friends for a while…” Santana shrugs again.

“Well, that combination sounds interesting, too much cuteness together.” Kurt adds while imagining the shenanigans Wesley _‘Charming Prince’_ Grey and Brittany _‘Adorably Unicorn’_ Pierce-Lopez probably get into together.

Blaine and Santana look at each other clearly picturing the same mental image of Wesley and Brittany together and can’t help but laugh. “Too much cuteness!” They repeat at the same time.

After 5 straight minutes of hysterics, Santana looks at the small folded piece of paper placed over the table and exclaims, “Crap! The grocery list!”

“What?” Kurt asks still distracted.

“The grocery list! We have to go and buy the stuff for tomorrow!”

“You guys haven’t bought anything yet?” Blaine asks.

“No, I don’t cook that well, I mean the most I ever did was help my Abuela stir stuff on the stove. I was sort of hoping you guys could take care of the kitchen…” She explains walking and grabbing the list. “Britt just wrote the stuff she thought we were going to need…Here…” She says handing Blaine the list.

Blaine grabs the paper and after giggling a little due to the colorful list, he says, “Well, she did a good job, we could work with this and prepare a very good dinner. If you really want to, I could take care of the cooking…”

“Let him Santana!” Kurt practically begs. “He’s very good at cooking!” He exclaims clearly proud of his husband’s cooking skills.

“Please be my guest Mr. Gary Coleman! The kitchen is all yours, go explore and see what else we could need so we can go and buy all the stuff for this dinner.”

Blaine nods ignoring yet another one of Santana’s nicknames for him and walks to the kitchen while Santana and Kurt wait at the living room.

“Ready…Let’s go!” Blaine says when he emerges from the kitchen.

“Perfect!” Kurt claps his hands excited. “Then let’s go we have emergency Christmas shopping to do!” He demands grabbing his husband’s hand and practically pulling him out the door.

Santana grabs her car keys and purse and walks with the guys. “I can’t believe we’re going to spend our first Christmas as married couples together, seriously? Who convinced me to do this?” She questions the two men.

“Britt…” They reply at the same time.

Santana nods and with a smile she closes the door of her apartment.

Sitting on the couch with her legs drawn up to her chest Rachel wraps her arms around her knees. It’s going on close to an hour now since Wesley stormed out after the stupid fight Rachel tried to pick up with him. Letting her mind drift off to the one person who knew her the best, she looks out the window to her left and up through the clouds. It was moments like this one that she really missed Finn. Not only because she loved him, but because he was her best friend too. He always knew what to say to ease her mind and explain things for her and help her put things into perspective.

In the background the T.V. is playing the music choice channel. It seems like no matter how many times she changed the channel, cheery Christmas music was the only thing playing on every station. Deciding she isn’t exactly feeling in the _‘jolly spirit’_ right now, being too depressed from her fight with her boyfriend, she grabs the remote and settles with just turning the device off saving herself from yet another rendition of _Jingle Bells_.

Silence fills the room and now Rachel remembers why she had the T.V. on in the first place. As she plays with the fabric on the hem of her pant legs, she softly starts to hum the first song that comes to her mind. She looks back to the window as if Finn was about to climb up the side of the house, enter through the window and give her all the right answers. Letting out a deep sigh when she realizes that was totally ridiculous, Rachel parts her lips and starts to softly sing.

_(Rachel)…Na na, na na na, na na. I miss you, miss you so bad. I don’t forget you, oh it’s so sad. I hope you can hear me. I remember it clearly. The day you slipped away. Was the day I found it won’t be the same. Oh…_

The words of the song flow from her lips with ease, like she has practiced it a million times before. But unlike any song she had practiced before, this one wasn’t for a NYADA audition or a Broadway callback or even her high school Nationals solos. This song was one that just easily slipped from her mouth when she started thinking about her lost lover, her lost best friend.

_(Rachel)…Na na na na na na na. I didn’t get around to kiss you. Goodbye on the hand. I wish that I could see you again. I know that I can’t. Oh. I hope you can hear me cause I remember it clearly. The day you slipped away. Was the day I found it won’t be the same. Oh…_

You know when they say _‘It will get easier’_ she used to always scoff. She couldn’t ever imagine thinking about Finn and not feeling that feeling in her chest like a semi truck was sitting on top of her. But they were right to some extent. She still had to choke back a few tears when she sang this song, but she found herself smiling at his memory instead of crying in the lost.

_(Rachel)…I had my wake up. Won’t you wake up. I keep asking why. And I can’t take it. It wasn’t fake. It happened, you passed by. Now you are gone, now you are gone. There you go, there you go. Somewhere I can’t bring you back. Now you are gone, now you are gone. There you go, there you go, Somewhere you’re not coming back…_

Standing up from her seated position, Rachel walks towards the T.V. stand looking at a picture of her and Wesley from the day the moved in together. The feeling of guilt is starting to set in because she hates fighting with the person she loves. But she can’t really find it in herself to think she was fully wrong. In her mind, she had a valid reason to be irritated. Struggling with what to do, Rachel runs her hand over Wesley’s outline in the picture.

_(Rachel)…The day you slipped away. Was the day I found it won’t be the same no..The day you slipped away, was the day that I found it won’t be the same oh. Na na, na na na, na na…_

It was now more than everything that she could use Finn’s words of wisdom. His Rachel Berry insight he seemed to have, even when they weren’t together, knew just what to say to get Rachel started off in the right direction. Rachel knew she loved Wesley and she needed to fix everything so they couldn’t get back to the happy in love couple they were before Chloe decided to pop back up in his life. But for some reason she has this feeling in the pit of her stomach. ‘ _Why am I having such a hard time trusting that he doesn’t want her now?’_

_(Rachel)…I miss you…_

By now Rachel has made her way to her bedroom. Sitting on top of the bed and holding onto Wesley’s pillow, the familiar scent of his body spray already calming her. Grabbing the box of tissues from her nightstand Rachel wipes a lone tear that has betrayed her and rolled down her semi flushed cheek. She lets out a long sigh as she looks up to the ceiling. “I could really use your words of wisdom right about now, Finn.” She says to the air.

After a moment pause she laughs at herself thinking, _‘Am I really talking to someone who isn’t going to respond?’_

She pauses once again before pressing her lips together in a tight line trying to hold back her impending tears. _‘Who cares if this makes me crazy, I need Finn!’_ She mentally yells to herself.

“I know you’re always up there looking over me.” She chuckles to herself with a watery smile, wiping her nose with the sleeve of her shirt. “Just like you said you would be, right?…I need your help now, because I really don’t know what to do. I think I made a mistake and I’m so worried I’m going to screw this all up.” She chokes on a sob, hiccuping as she takes in a jagged breath. “I had a fight with Wesley…”

Wiping her tears with a hand full of tissues she then continues, “You know?…You would of really liked Wesley, I think. He really is a great guy.” Right when she thought her tears had subside a fresh wave broke through its dam and spilled over her bottom eyelids flowing down her already tear stained cheeks.

Between sobs she continues, “ I don’t know why, bu-but I-I’m so afraid of lo-losing him. I just feel like my whole life I’ve been competing with the pretty blonde…First Quinn and now Chloe…I thought I was finally over that part of my life. But I guess we don’t really ever leave high school do we?…And I know that like you, Wes has chosen me and given me no real reason to think otherwise…But Finn, you should see this girl! She’s beautiful! And she’s a bigger bitch than Quinn ever was. It’s like she won’t take no for an answer and she is determined to ruin my relationship…” Rachel’s sobs start to slow down slightly as she takes a few deep breaths trying to return her breathing back to normal.

“I-I just don’t know what to do…or what to say…I haven’t talked about this with him, in fact with anyone but you…But you’re right I should just be honest and upfront with him, tell him what I feel…How I feel…” Rachel sighs, dropping her used tissues into the small waste basket between her bed and her night stand.

Clearing her throat and swallowing the lump in her throat she stays in silence for a moment, just imagining Finn’s voice.

“That if I’m in love with him? Ummm…Yes I am.” Rachel speaks out into the air confidently. “Don’t get me wrong, you were and always will be my first and one true love. But yes…I love him…I really love him. He makes some happy, Finn. He makes me feel special again.”

With a smile playing at her lips Rachel looks back out the window next to her bed before adding a second thought, “You know? Sometimes I think you sent him to save me…”

Wesley waits inside the _Department of Coffee and Social Affairs_ coffee shop for Brittany, sitting on a booth in front of a wooden bar. Having already ordered his coffee Wes grabs onto its base seeking its warmth. After taking a quick sip he looks up and over his shoulder when he hears the door open. A smile quickly forms on his lips when he sees Brittany stomp her feet on the door mat by the door trying to kick off some dirt that has clung to her boots.

The fuzzy ball at the end of Brittany’s Santa hat bounces as she makes her way towards Wesley after spotting him. Chuckling Wesley stands up to greet the blonde with a hug, “Nice hat Britt.” He compliments as they both pull back from the hug.

“I knew you’d like it! That’s why I brought you one too!” Brittany quickly pulls a second Santa hat from her purse and extends her arm to hand it to her friend.

Wesley eyes the hat for a second before reluctantly taking it from her when Brittany says, “Come on! We’re besties, you have to wear it with me, it’s the holiday spirit!”

With a smile and a shake of his head Wesley opens the bottom of the hat and places it on top of his head. “Okay fine…Happy?” He asks smiling at the blonde.

“Very! Now let’s take a pic, I want to show this to San and Rachel!” Brittany exclaims excitedly, and the smile that was on Wesley’s face just a few seconds ago is now gone just by the mention of his girlfriend’s name.

Brittany, noticing that sad look upon her best friend’s face, immediately asks, “Are you okay?”

Wesley shakes his head and looks down. “Not really, but umm do you want to sit?” He suggest pointing to the empty booth.

It’s only then that Brittany really takes in her surroundings and frowning in confusion she shakes her head, “I’m not sure if I want to be interviewed by the police right now, you said you wanted some coffee, there’s a coffee nearby I can tell…”

“This is not a police office Britt, we are at a coffee shop…” Wes explains unable to hide a laugh at his friend’s antics.

“Well it doesn’t look like a coffee shop…” Brittany states still trying to picture this office-like place as a coffee shop.

Wes laughs. “Yeah I know ,but it was the nearest one to my place…Do you want to sit down? Or do you want us to go somewhere else?”

“No it’s fine, let’s stay here…” She says taking a seat.

“Coffee?” Wesley asks pointing towards the menu.

Britt nods again and not really paying attention to the menu she just replies, “I’ll just take the same thing you’re drinking…”

Wesley nods and immediately orders the barista for another latte. While they wait for Brittany’s order to be ready, Brittany holds her friend’s hand and asks, “Tell me what happened Crusher, you sounded very sad over the phone.”

Wesley sighs and looking down at his coffee, he replies, “I had a big fight with Rachel this morning…Do you remember what I told you last week about feeling that lately I’m doing everything wrong?”

Brittany nods and Wesley continues, “Well, apparently I wasn’t mistaken. I don’t know why, but she just keeps yelling at me for random little things like laundry and stupid toilet paper, and I’m pretty sure it’s because of a bigger reason.”

Just when Brittany is about to reply, the barista hands them her order and they both walk towards the nearest table and take a seat there. Brittany takes a sip of her drink and licks her lips as she asks, “And what would the bigger reason be?”

“Chloe…” He says as a matter of explanation.

“That crazy ex girlfriend of yours who was living in London but now is back guest starring at the show?” Brittany asks.

“The very same…” Wesley trails off taking a sip from his coffee.

“I thought Rachel was okay with her…”

“I thought so too, but let’s just say that Chloe hasn’t exactly been cordial with her and I think it’s really getting to her now, but what I don’t understand is why. Because, between you and I, I don’t think I have ever given Rachel a reason to feel like she isn’t good enough for me. She’s all I ever wanted, Britt!” Wesley confesses.

Brittany gives him a soft pout and says, “Well have you told her that? Girls like to be told that they are wanted, like all the time.”

“I have! Well, kind of…I mean I tried, once when Chloe first showed up and Rachel met her. She freaked out and I tried to talk to her and I told her she was beautiful and everything. But I get your point, maybe I should have told her more often, I don’t know…It’s kind of hard for me because I’ve never been good with words I guess.”

Brittany nods and with scrunched brows she looks down towards her coffee cup, “Yeah me either, once in High School I stopped speaking English and made up my own language because I had a hard time with words too, and letters…But Santana’s always been able to understand me.” Brittany looks up from her hot beverage and sees that sad look on Wes’s face again and immediately covers up. “Right, I’m sorry Crusher. I’m not helping with the talking about my perfect marriage…Oh! I know! Maybe you should sing her a song to express how you feel!”

“You think?” Wesley asks frowning as he contemplates the possibility. It was romantic and he knew Rachel loved those impromptu performances.

Brittany nods frantically. “Yes! I’m sure Rachel will love that!”

Wes gives his friend a slightly smile and Brittany, extending her hand across the table to grab Wesley’s, says, “I don’t like to see you so sad, it makes me feel sad too. Everything is going to be fine Crusher, I promise you that. Rachel is annoying, but she’s a good person…”

Wes laughs a little. “Thanks Britt, you’re a very good friend! I’m glad to have you in my life…”

Brittany nods and licks some coffee foam from her lips, as she says,  “Yeah, I’m pretty awesome…”

Wes laughs a little but the smile dies quickly in his lips. He’s still not in the mood for smiling.

“What can I do to make you smile? You want me to sing you a Christmas song?” Brittany suggests clearly inspired by the song being played at the coffee shop.

Wesley shakes his head. “No, they are depressing and I’m not in the mood…”

Brittany nods in agreement and thinks for a minute until something comes to her mind. “Okay, no Christmas songs, but I have a song I want to sing to you…”

“You do?” Wesley asks intrigued.

Brittany sends Wes a knowing smile as she starts to snaps her fingers following the beat of one of her favorite Bruno Mars songs.

_(Brittany)…If you ever find yourself stuck in the middle of the sea, I’ll sail the world to find you…If you ever find yourself lost in the dark and you can’t see, I’ll be the light to guide you…_

Standing up, the blonde grabs a stack of cups from the empty table next to them. Setting them upside down she starts to tap the rhythm of the song on the bottom of the cups as she keeps singing. Wesley, who recognized the song after the first note, starts to clap along from his seat, genuinely smiling for the first time since the fight he had with Rachel.

_(Brittany)…Find out what we’re made of when we are called to help our friends in need. You can count on me like one two three, I’ll be there. And I know when I need it, I can count on you like four three two, you’ll be there. ‘Cause that’s what friends are supposed to do, oh yeah…_

A few customers throughout the small coffee shop turn around and start to clap along too, enjoying the impromptu performance that the blonde is giving.

_(Brittany)…Whoa, whoa…Oh, oh…Yeah, yeah…_

Brittany stands up on one of the tables, and snapping her fingers, she extends her left hand to Wesley, inviting him to join dancing with her.

_(Brittany)…If you tossin’ and you’re turnin’ and you just can’t fall asleep, I’ll sing a song beside you. And if you ever forget how much you really mean to me, everyday I will remind you. Ooh…_

Wesley laughs a little, and adjusting his Santa hat, the blue-eyed man, walks the small distance and reaches his friend. Standing up next to her, the two friends join their voices to keep singing.

_(Wesley and Brittany)…Find out what we’re made of when we are called to help our friends in need. You can count on me like one two three, I’ll be there. And I know when I need it, I can count on you like four three two, you’ll be there. ‘Cause that’s what friends are supposed to do, oh yeah…_

Brittany smiles widely when she notices that her attempts to make Wesley smile worked. She just wanted to make him smile, and so far she had succeeded.

_(Brittany)…Oh, oh…Yeah, yeah_

Wesley, feeling a lot better with this sudden performance starts to consider Brittany’s advice, and as he keeps singing, a list of endless songs about love start to go through his mind. Now he just needs to find exactly what he wants to express to his girlfriend.

_(Wesley)…You’ll always have my shoulder when you cry…I’ll never let go, never say goodbye…_

Brittany takes Wesley’s hand and gives it a soft squeeze, letting him know she was always going to be there for him. Wesley smiles at his friend and winking at her, they both join their voices one last time to finish the song.

_(Wesley and Brittany)…You know you can count on me like one two three, I’ll be there. And I know when I need it, I can count on you like four three two and you’ll be there. ‘Cause that’s what friends are supposed to do, oh yeah…Oh, oh…You can count on me ’cause I can count on you…_

When the song comes to an end, the two friends remove their Santa’s hats and take a bow to thank the people gathered around there for the overwhelming round of applause they are giving them.

Looking towards his friend, Wesley just mouths a simple _‘Thank you…’_ and Brittany winks at him. After all that’s what friends are for.

Artie and Madison make their way to the Omni Los Angeles Hotel restaurant. The blonde is pushing her boyfriend’s wheelchair as they reach the front door and ask for a table.

“Some of our friends will be joining us, could you give us a table for 6?” Artie asks the groomed man at the front door.

“Yes sir, follow me please” The man says, guiding Artie and Madison into the small restaurant.

Once the blonde girl and the filmmaker student are seated, they order some drinks while they wait for their friends to join them. Fifteen minutes later, Quinn, Puck, Tina, and Shane walk into the restaurant and take a seat by the table.

“What do you guys want to order?” Artie immediately asks.

“Whatever you guys are drinking…” Puck replies.

Artie calls the waiter and asks a new round of drinks for he and his friends. The waiter just nods. “Right away sir.”

When the waiter walks away, they all settle into easy conversations. The girls start to chat about the school and how they are doing in their respective majors. Tina at Browns, Quinn at Yale and Madison at the Brooklyn Film school. On the other hand, Artie, Puck and Shane start to chat about the army. Apparently Artie’s new idea for a film was about soldiers at war, and Puck and Shane were thrilled to share whatever information they were allowed to share with their friend.

After some minutes of conversation and just when the girls were talking about teachers, Quinn asks, “And speaking about teachers…where are Mr. Schuester and Emma? I haven’t seen them in a while…”

“Oh they are at their room, I think…” Artie replies. “They said they were tired of the trip and Daniel was asleep so I’m sure they are resting too.”

Tina looks around and notices that Mike and Naomi, his girlfriend, are not around either. “And Mike and Naomi?” She asks.

“They went for a walk…” Madison explains. “I think Mike wanted to show his girlfriend Britt’s dance academy”

“I wanted to go too. I want to see this place! Quinn says, that Brittany told her during a Skype chat that it was the best academy in all L.A!” Tina exclaims excited.

“I heard..” Artie pipes in. “That in fact she was doing pretty well, I think tomorrow before the Christmas dinner we could all go and visit her there right?” He suggests.

“Maybe we should call her first, I don’t think she’s going to be there tomorrow…It’s Christmas after all.” Quinn says.

“Yeah…You’re right..” They all agree as they fall back into their previous conversations.

Some minutes later, the waiter walks back to the table bringing all the drinks and the menus, so they can all start to order. After placing their order and handing their menu’s back to the waiter Quinn smiles and gives the waitress a quick _‘Thank you’_ before turning her attention back to her friends. “So can anyone explain to me why we have to pay for these hotel rooms?”

Shaking her head with a smile, Tina speaks up after seeing Artie and Madison shrug and everyone else seeming to ignore Quinn’s question, “That’s because Kurt, Blaine, Sam and Mercedes invaded the free places!” She explains causing the blonde to roll her eyes and sigh in defeat.

Santana, Kurt and Blaine enter the grocery store and immediately start to go through all the aisles picking up the stuff they are going to need for the very special Christmas dinner they are going to have the next day.

“Wait, Lady-Anderson-Hummel!” Santana says, noticing that Kurt was filling the cart with bags and bags of food. “So, for how many exactly are we cooking?”

“Rachel, Wesley, Sam, Mercedes, Tina, Shane, Quinn, Puck, Mr. Schue, Emma, baby Daniel though I’m not sure of we should count him, Mike, Naomi, Artie, Madison, and the four of us…” Kurt says, mentally trying to count how many.

“And that makes 19…” Blaine adds, noticing his husband is having some problems with the counting stuff.

Santana frowns, “Okay, okay, then let’s make it to 20, it’s easier….”

Kurt and Blaine nod and start to pick up stuff while Santana takes care of choosing the wine.

When they are on their way to pay, the speakers of the store start to play the very first notes of Winter Wonderland and Kurt immediately starts to hum. Blaine, who was pushing the cart, stops in his tracks and grabs his husband hand to join the song.

Santana panics, and walking between the two newlyweds, she exclaims, “Oh no! No, no, no! You are not going to sing here!”

Kurt and Blaine look at each other and smile at each other.  “I’m sorry Santana, but it’s our tradition! Every Christmas we sing a duet together…”

“I don’t care about your cheesy traditions! You’re not singing in the grocery store!” Santana exclaims trying to cup both her friends mouths, but the two boys keep humming until she eventually gives up. Rolling her eyes she takes over pushing the cart, trying to distract herself from the two men’s voices ringing through the aisle.

_(Kurt)…Sleigh bells ring, are you listening? In the lane, snow is glistening. A beautiful sight, we’re happy tonight. Walking in a winter wonderland…_

Kurt starts to walk through the Christmas decoration aisle and while grabbing a fake candy cane as a microphone, he keeps singing with Blaine following right behind him.

_(Blaine)…Gone away is the bluebird, here to stay is a new bird. He sings a love song, while we stroll along, walking in a winter wonderland…_

Blaine walks through all the plastic trees and Inflatable decorations while he sings his part of the song. Meanwhile Kurt starts to dance around him using the fake candy cane to dance Chaplin-style.

_(Kurt)…In the meadow we can build a snowman, we’ll pretend that he is Parson Brown. He’ll say: Are you married? We’ll say: No man, but you can do the job when you’re in town…_

Blaine smiles at the cuteness of his husband and grabs a Santa hat to wear it. Kurt runs over his husband and grabs a hat too so they look a like while they keep singing.

Santana who’s looking at them from afar rolls her eyes playfully and pretends to ignore them, though she is secretly enjoying the performance

_(Blaine)…Later on, we’ll conspire, as we dream by the fire. To face unafraid, the plans that we’ve made, walking in a winter wonderland…_

A group of customers doing their Christmas shopping, gather around the two boys as they  keep singing and joining their voices in the most perfect harmony to honor their annual traditional Christmas duet.

_(Both)…In the meadow we can build a snowman, we’ll pretend that he is Parson Brown. He’ll say: Are you ready? We’ll say: No man, but you can do the job when you’re in town…_

Santana sighs when she notices that there are at least 30 people around them. _‘Why do they have to love the spotlight!?’_ She mutters to herself as she pushes the cart through the crowd to get to her friends raising a hand up to cover half her face pretending to be afraid of being recognized with them.

_(Both)…Later on, we’ll conspire, as we dream by the fire. To face unafraid, the plans that we’ve made, walking in a winter wonderland. Walking in a winter wonderland…Walking in a winter wonderland…_

The song comes to an end and the two men look at each other and share a quick and sweet kiss, while the people gather around them clap excited. Santana manages to get to the boys and trying not to laugh she walks near them and whispers, “Okay, you two officially gave the most ridiculous _Winter Wonderland_ rendition, and I saw people recording it, so I’m really praying for your future kids because I bet this is going to be one of the funniest videos on YouTube, but anyways…Now let’s go before they ask you to sing Frosty the Snowman!”

“Oh, but I’d love to sing Frosty the snowman!” Kurt jokes, knowing that Santana is going to go all Lima Heights on him.

“Don’t you dare!” She says, pointing her finger at Kurt in a menacing way.

“But–” Blaine starts to say, but Santana shuts him up immediately.

“Shut it Ms. Cindy Lou! I said no and that’s it! Now let’s go, Britt just texted me and she’s on her way home. I wanna be there when she gets there!”

“Okay…” Kurt and Blaine reply at the same time.

“You’re soooo gross together! Like seriously!” Santana exclaims, faking being sick by the newlyweds synchrony.

“Come on Santana! You do the exact same thing with Britt, so cut the crap, okay? You love us! Admit it!”

“Hmmm…” She hesitates, “I kind of like you, but no,…I don’t think I love you.” She teases with a smile playing at her lips.

Kurt and Blaine roll their eyes and just laugh, because they know that’s a _‘yes I love you but I won’t tell you’_ confession from their friend.

“Now let’s go I wanna show Britt the party hats we bought!” She says pointing to the elf paper hats they had found.

“We’re gonna look so cute wearing those…” Blaine adds smiling and clapping excited while he foresees himself wearing one of those silly hats.

“Awww, but you always look cute.” Kurt says and Blaine’s just smiles broadly and leans over for a kiss. Apparently the boys were still in their honeymoon phase.

“God! What’s wrong with you two?” Santana exclaims exhausted. “Let’s just go! You’re embarrassing me!”

Wesley pokes his head into the doorway before tiptoeing into the house and closing the door softly behind him. He isn’t sure exactly what mood Rachel might be in and he certainly isn’t ready for another screaming match. After his conversation with Brittany he knows now what he did wrong and what he needs to do to fix it.

He softens his steps as he makes his way further into the house, looking to each side trying to spot his girlfriend. Traveling through the house with no prevail he stops outside of their shared bedroom, knowing she had to be inside. He takes a deep breath as he looks down at his feet. Wesley hates fighting in general let alone with the woman he loves.

Slowly pushing the door open he spots a lump in the comforter. Walking closer to the bed he sees a mess of raven hair poking out of the blankets. Rachel had her whole body and her face hidden behind the blankets. The sight of his girlfriend curled up into a ball makes a smile of adoration spear across his features. Wesley tries to softly climb onto the bed but as his weight presses into the mattress, the bed dips slightly causing the brunette to pull her face from the covers and look up to Wesley.

With a soft smile Wesley lays down and wraps his arms around Rachel, pulling her into a tight embrace. He kisses her forehead, then her temple and then right behind her ear before whispering, “I didn’t mean to call you crazy…You’re not crazy. I was mad and I’m sorry…”

Lifting her head from Wesley’s chest Rachel tucks a stray strand of hair behind her ear. Sniffling, she shifts her still red rimmed eyes between both of her boyfriend’s before clearing her throat and saying, “No, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t be picking fights with you over silly things like the way you put of the toilet paper roll.” Rachel pushes off Wesley and sits cross-legged in front of him with her hands resting in her lap, playing with the wad of tissues she’s still holding. “And I think I need to just sit down with you and tell you–”

“Wait.” Wesley speaks up in a soft voice, interrupting Rachel. “I think I also need to apologize. I have never really been that good with words and because of that, instead of sitting down and talking these things out with you and reassuring you, I just kept putting it off. It’s always been hard for more to express my feelings in words I guess, and I just assumed you know how crazy about you I am. But now it’s come to my attention that you may not know that exactly.” Wesley pauses and reaches forward for Rachel’s hand, running his thumb over her knuckles. “You should never have to question if I want you more than any other girl, because for me it’s a no brainer! You’re it for me Rachel. I honestly believe you are the one. My one and only. And I want to make you feel wanted.”

Wesley places a soft lingering kiss to the back of Rachel’s hand before placing it back in her lap and climbing off the bed.

Raising her eyebrows and giving Wesley a curious look Rachel questions, “Wh-what are you doing?”

“Shh.” Wesley chuckles, leaning over and grabbing his guitar from beside the dresser. He sits down in front of Rachel on her vanity’s bench seat, laying the guitar on his right thigh. “Just listen.” He says with a crooked smile and sparkling blue eyes as he starts to strum the guitar with his right hand and press the chords on the fretboard with his left.

_(Wesley)…You know I’d fall apart without you. I don’t know how you do what you do. ‘Cause everything that don’t make sense about me, makes sense when I’m with you. Like everything that’s green, girl, I need you. But it’s more than one and one makes two. Put aside the math and the logic of it, you gotta know you’re wanted too…_

Looking down at his hands strumming the chords before looking back up to Rachel and smiling softly at her, Wesley tilts his head to the side, his eyes still bored into his girlfriend’s as the emotion he puts into the words flows from his mouth like it was the simplest thing he has ever done, leaving him wondering for a split second why he didn’t think of this before.

_(Wesley)…’Cause I wanna wrap you up, wanna kiss your lips. I wanna make you feel wanted. And I wanna call you mine, wanna hold your hand forever. And never let you forget it. Yeah, I, I wanna make you feel wanted…_

He lets his eyes drift closed as he continues to sing, strumming a little harder as his voice gets louder.

Rachel sits on the bed with her bottom lip caught tightly between her teeth. She has heard Wesley sing a few times before, but she is still surprised every time that deep voice echoes through the room. If you would of asked her the day she met Wesley what kind of voice she would expect from him this was definitely not what she pictured. She was blown away by his voice and even more in awe now that he was spilling his heart out in song to her.

  _(Wesley)…Anyone can tell you you’re pretty, yeah. And you get that all the time, I know you do. But your beauty’s deeper than the make-up. And I wanna show you what I see tonight…_

As Wesley puts his heart into the song, believing every word of it must of be written for Rachel, he sends her a wink.

_(Wesley)…When I wrap you up, when I kiss your lips. I wanna make you feel wanted And I wanna call you mine, wanna hold your hand forever. And never let you forget it, ‘Cause, baby, I, I wanna make you feel wanted…_

Standing up from his position on the bench Wesley walks around the bed causing Rachel to follow him with her eyes. His eyes never leave Rachel’s as he moves around the room feeling like he has too much emotion to express to sit still any longer. He leans back slightly and his stomach muscles, hidden by his shirt and the guitar, clench as he belts out the words of the song.

_(Wesley)…As good as you make me feel, I wanna make you feel better. Better than your fairy tales. Better than your best dreams. You’re more than everything I need. You’re all I ever wanted…All I ever wanted…_

Choosing to abandon his guitar and finish the song acappella, Wesley lifts the guitar strap over his shoulder and sets it against the wall, quickly forgetting about it as he walks closer to the bed.

_(Wesley)…And I just wanna wrap you up, wanna kiss your lips. I wanna make you feel wanted. And I wanna call you mine, wanna hold your hand forever. And never let you forget it. Yeah, I wanna make you feel wanted. Baby, I wanna make you feel wanted…_

Wesley gives Rachel a smirk as he runs the back of his hand over her tear stained cheeks. Softly singing out the last light before leaning in and giving her the softest of kisses to her lips.

_(Wesley)…You’ll always be… Wanted…_

Santana stands in the hallway looking into the mirror that hangs on the wall. Staring at her reflection she can’t help the tug on her lips as her face makes a frown. It’s Christmas and here she is in her small two bedroom apartment getting ready for her house to be bombarded with the children from misfit toys while wearing a Santa hat that her wife and two fairies of best friends begged her to wear. And by beg she means Brittany asked her in her _‘I’m adorable, I love Christmas, and you love me so, please wear the hat’_ kind of way. So of course she complained. Not like she could complain though because even though she wasn’t a big fan of the overly jolliness of Christmas she had to admit she looked sexy as hell and rocked the Santa hat.

Fluffing out the curls at the end of her hair Santana sighs and walks back to the dining room from the hallway. As she enters the dining room Kurt extends a hand full of silverware. “Will you help set the table? We have about 8 seats here at the table and we can probably fit about four at the bar. The rest we could set up the extra tables we borrowed from you neighbor and hopefully fit the rest.” Kurt asks.

Taking the silverware from Kurt she takes in his appearance as she starts to blindly set the silverware in random spots on the table. Santana presses her lips in a tight line as she tries to keep herself from laughing. If she thought she looked remotely funny in her Santa hat she knew she couldn’t have been any worse than Kurt.

Kurt hears the muffled chuckle coming from the Latina next to him. Looking up quickly he puts his hand on his hip and asks, “What?! What’s so funny?”

Swallowing her laughs Santana shakes her head but answers his question anyways. “Oh my God! This is priceless! You in that hat!”

“Oh come on Santana be mature! It’s Christmas and you’re wearing one too!”

Shrugging her shoulders Santana lays down her last fork before grabbing a hand full more from the pile beside Kurt. “Whatever I look hot. You look like an elf trying to pass as Santa.”

“You think I look like and elf? Have you seen the two in the kitchen?” Kurt puts his thumb over his shoulder to the direction of Blaine and Brittany who are busy at work in the kitchen working on the finishing touches of the mini feast they were preparing.

Not knowing what Kurt is talking about Santana looks over her shoulder and through the doorway leading to the kitchen. Inside, Brittany and Blaine are wearing elf hats with pointed ears attached to its sides, covering up their own ears. If it would of been anyone else but her wife wearing the hat she probably would have immediately started busting out laughing. Which she almost did at first look at Blaine, with his hair gelled back perfectly and his elf hat sitting on the back of his head, covering his ears but still showing the Elvis curl he is sporting in the front. She can feel the laughter rising in her, mainly because she just loves torturing the two boys, it’s the way she shows she loves them. But as her gaze shifts from Blaine to Brittany her chuckles quickly subsides and the smile that’s on her face now is one of pure adoration. Brittany’s blonde locks flowed effortlessly down her back and the top half of her head was covered by the green and red pointed elf hat.

Brittany stands in the kitchen stirring a pot of cheese sauce for the artichoke mushroom lasagna entree. Lifting the spoon to Blaine to allow him to take a quick taste. After receiving a nod in approval Brittany turns the front burner to the stove off and puts her spoon down. She looks up from her task and spots Santana looking towards her. Blushing slightly Brittany ducks her head and goes to look away, but is brought back to her wife when she hears Santana’s voice.

“Hey, how come you two get to wear elf hats and me and Homo Clause over here got the Santa hats?”

Kurt picks up a piece of baguette from the appetizer tray and throws it in Santana’s direction but completely misses her.

Turning and narrowing her eyes at her friend Santana says, “Yeah, not helping your case.”

Before she could insult Kurt any farther Brittany steps into the doorway, explaining, “We have elf hats, Santana, because we are the workers!” She chirps excitedly. “You and Kurt aren’t really doing anything to help you’re just delivering so you’re like Santa Claus. Where as we are the workers of Santa, or in this case Santana!” She sends her wife a sly wink causing Santana to smirk back at her, showing her dimples.

“Wait? I’m not working for Santana!” Blaine protests.

Brittany looks over her shoulder and shrugs, “Oh yeah. You can have other Santa!” She points to Kurt, “But please no kinky role play in our house. You can keep the hat Kurt and play whatever you want when you get back to New York.” She spits out nonchalantly.

With wide eyes and rosy cheeks both boys turn back to their task trying to hide their continually reddening faces. Kurt goes behind Santana and straightens all the silverware and napkins she so effortlessly tossed on the table in attempt of helping when there’s a knock at the door. Santana looks up and yells out a quick _‘I got it!’_ before walking the short distance to the door, leaving a relieved Kurt to finish up the work on the tables by himself.

Santana swings the front door open revealing Wesley, Rachel, Mercedes and Sam. Sending them a big smile, they all exchanges hellos and hugs before the four new guests take off their jackets and fully enter the house.

Trying to be a good hostess, no lie those were Brittany’s exact words to her. _“Honey, just be polite and try to be a good hostess. Take their coats for them or something like you see in the movies.”_ So that’s what she’s doing down. As Santana lays her arm out for the new group to drop their coast over her forearm, she tries to repress a sigh. Once she has all the coats she excuses herself for a moment, telling everyone to _‘make themselves at home.’_

Santana walks down the hallway, opens her bedroom door and throws the coats into the room not caring where they land before closing the door again and with a wide smile going back out to the living room to _‘entertain’_ the guests.

Mercedes joins Blaine and Brittany in the kitchen, trying to help in any way she can to speed things along as everyone complained about being starving to death. She of course now has a elf hat on too since Brittany made a rule that everyone had to wear one.

Only a few minutes past by with idle chatter and the background sound of pots, pans, timers and the Christmas music channel on the radio playing when there is another knock at the door. Once again Santana rushes to the front door and pulls it open this time revealing a much larger group of people she would consider her family, not that she’d admit that to them of course.

Standing in the doorway are Puck, Quinn, Madison, Artie, Tina, Shane, Mike, who ever his girlfriend was, Santana couldn’t remember, something Asiany she was sure. Along with Will and Mrs. Pillsbury or Mrs. Schuester now, who is carrying little baby Daniel, who Santana swears is the cutest baby she’s seen thus far.

As everyone makes their way into the crowded apartment Santana starts to feel a bit overwhelmed with the number over people occupying their small apartment. Thoughts about fire safety code regulations and such start to run through her head. Her eyes scan the apartment looking from the living room where she was feeling a knot in her stomach every time someone got to closer to her side table lamp. You know the one she found in the Better Homes and Garden magazine and she had to beg Brittany to spend almost over two hundred dollars on, yeah that’s the one. To the living room where a group of five have already eaten through more than half of the tray of appetizers and to the kitchen that is covered in every kind of sticky she can think of.

Santana stands there in the corner of the room wondering how the hell she even got tricked into hosting the Christmas dinner. She was sure Rachel’s house was bigger anyways but here they are cramming twenty or so people into a two bedroom apartment. Still scanning through the kitchen her eyes finally land on Brittany. The blonde is dancing around the kitchen with a spoon in her hand, dripping some type of goop all over the counters and floor as she twirls in like a prop to her dance routine. But that smile. She’s wearing a wide radiant smile that immediately makes Santana’s heart rate quicken under her rib cage. In that moment, staring at her wife dancing around the kitchen, laughing and wearing the biggest smile she thinks she ever seen, _well besides their wedding of course._ Santana instantly feels all her anxiety and worry slip from her mind. Sure the place was a nut house right now and she may end up having to replace a four hundred dollar coffee table and spend three days cleaning up after this gain of misfits but she would do it all over a million times just to see that look on her wife’s face. ‘ _Shut up I’m not whipped, I’m in love, whatever!_ _This is Christmas’_ , She thinks to herself. Growing up in a house where her father was always gone she never really had any big awesome Christmas traditions and family moments to look forward to but now, with Brittany, and this really big unorganized group of friends, Santana realizes she has a family. And in that family she would include every loser in this building. With one last loving look toward the blonde that changed her whole life Santana pushes off the wall and joins the group in the living room as she sees Mr. Schue call everyone into the room to make a toast.

After making sure everyone had a glass with some type of liquid of choice in it, Will stands up with his wineglass in hand. “You know? Without realizing it we made Christmas together a tradition about four years ago when you guys broke into my house and decorated my tree with me.” He lets out a chuckle at the memory. “But I wouldn’t have it any other way. And I am so glad that no matter where in the country, or the world we are living in we still can honor that tradition. You guys are my family. It’s not about blood or who married whom. Family is about heart, it’s about the ones who care enough to stick through all the hard stuff. The people who will laugh and cry with you. Fam–”

“Okay, okay, we get it Mr. Schue we are family…” Puck speaks up, “Let’s all just raise our glasses and cheer ‘cause it’s Christmas bitches! And we love each other, even those of us who don’t celebrate Christmas but are here every single year singing carols and doing Christmasy stuff anyways!” He raises his beer up in the air and everyone else soon follows as a chorus of _‘Cheers!’_ erupts from the group.

“Guys have a jolly Christmas!” Sam says with a lopsided grin after taking a big gulp of some fruity mix drink Blaine and Quinn where just at the bar making.

Immediately a Christmas song pops into Rachel’s head and she starts to hum encouraging everyone else to join in.

“Oh good God, not again.” Santana rolls her eyes and leans into Brittany’s side trying to hide her face, causing her wife to just laugh at her antics.

_(Rachel)…Have a holly, jolly Christmas. It’s the best time of the year. I don’t know if there’ll be snow, but have a cup of cheer…_

Rachel starts to sing and Artie immediately wheels his chair to the front to help the brunette with the impromptu Christmas song performance. The rest of the group just smiles and swing their heads following the Christmasy rhythm of the song.

Brittany, who’s been dancing and smiling all night, quickly runs to her room and comes out carrying a small basket with what looks like mistletoe.

_(Artie)…Have a holly, jolly Christmas. And when you walk down the street say hello to friends you know and everyone you meet…_

The blonde immediately runs to the nearest couple, Mike and Naomi, and places the mistletoe above their heads. Mike and Naomi exchange a kiss, while Brittany moves to the next couple, Quinn and Puck. Quinn laughs at the antics of her friend, but can say another word because in that moment Puck grabs her from the waist and leans her down to give her a movie-like kind of kiss.

Brittany claps excited as she moves on to the next pair of lovebirds. Tina and Shane. The Asian man as soon as he notices the small sprig of mistletoe, grabs his girlfriend and gives her a sweet kiss causing the entire group to smile. Brittany then places the sprig above Sam and Mercedes who without hesitation melt into a kiss.

_(Artie)…Oh, ho, the mistletoe is hung where you can see. Somebody waits for you, kiss her once for me…_

The blonde keeps going until the mistletoe lands above Artie and Madison, who with smiles honor the tradition and share a kiss. Next to them, Will and Emma smile because they know it’s their turn, so as soon as they feel the mistletoe above them, they exchange a quick kiss and then lean over to kiss both Daniel’s cheeks, causing the entire group to let out a soft _‘awww’._

Brittany, while still dancing, runs over to where Wesley and Rachel are, and places the spring above their heads. The two T.V. stars smile at each other and kiss while Brittany runs and places the mistletoe above Kurt and Blaine, who immediately join their mouths and share a passionate kiss.

Finally, Brittany raises her hand above her head and winking at her wife, the two girls kiss each other as the song keeps going.

_(Rachel)…Have a holly jolly Christmas. And in case you didn’t hear, oh by golly, have a holly jolly Christmas this year…_

While Rachel and Artie keep singing, the rest of the group starts to take they respective places at the improvised huge table. Mercedes, Blaine, and Brittany start to serve dinner and after some mandatory religious prayers and all those traditions, the group of friends start to dig into their plates.

_(Artie)…Oh, ho, the mistletoe is hung where you can see. Somebody waits for you, kiss her once for me…_

Between glasses of wine and delicious food, time flows smoothly and the dinner turns out to be a success. Everybody is having a good time and while it’s true that they are not related by blood, whoever that was near that table would of had thought they were in fact, a family.

_(Artie and Rachel)…Have a holly jolly Christmas. And in case you didn’t hear, oh by golly, have a holly jolly Christmas this year…_

The song comes to an end and everyone’s ears automatically perk up when they hear a resounding, “Ho, ho, ho.” Coming from down the hall. Turning their heads everyone leans in their seats to look down the hallway and see where the noise is coming from. Coming out of the bathroom, shifting his big black belt with a silver buckle is Sam wearing a Santa costume with what Santana could only think is her plush throw pillows of her couch, shoved under his suit to make him have a Santa belly to go along with his fake white beard.

As Sam walks into the living everyone stares at him in disbelief. That is until baby Daniel, who at the moment is sitting in Tina’s lap, squeals in excitement at seeing _‘Santa Claus’_. The room erupts into laughter at their former teachers son’s adorableness.

“Ho, ho, ho!” Sam calls out in his best Santa Claus impersonation before stopping in front of Daniel. Reaching in the red bag that he dragged behind him, the one that everyone seemed to miss before. Pulling out a small toy car and handing it to the small one year old Daniel claps his hands excitedly as he reaches out for the toy, immediately sticking it in his mouth.

“Oh, honey don’t do that that’s gross, we haven’t disinfected it yet.” Emma pulls out a handful of baby wipes and starts meticulously cleaning every inch of the toy before handing it back to her son. “He’s teething, so everything goes straight into his mouth. So unsanitary.” Will sets his hand on top of hers giving her hand a light squeeze, silently telling her he is proud of her for not going overboard and demanding to give Dan a shower then and there. Over the years she has definitely made a lot of progress, but it’s something that will always be there but they would handle it together, as a family. Understanding the silent gesture Emma’s leans over and gives Will a peck on the lips, thanking him for his support.

After receiving a slobbery kiss from Daniel, Sam stands up and shifts his Santa suit making sure nothing is about to fall out and makes his way to his group of friends. He takes a seat on the coffee table, to Santana’s distress, and starts rifling through his red sack pack. Taking out two small boxes Sam smiles and still doing his Santa voice, he says, “These are for little Mike and Naomi who I heard did very good at school this year.”

Mike and Naomi laugh and grab the boxes Sam is handing them. Surprised, the two Asians open their boxes and burst out laughing. Inside the tiny boxes there are a bag of fortune cookies for Naomi and an old Japanese cooking book with chopsticks included.

“For you Asian needs…” Sam says as a matter of explanation as he proceeds to take out the next gifts. “Oh, these are for my friends, Quinn and Puck…” He says handing them two envelopes.

“What’s this?” Puck asks confused, already tearing the envelope to see what’s inside.

“What the–” Quinn exclaims blushing from head to toe.

Inside the envelopes there are two photoshopped magazines with adult material and Puck and Quinn’s faces all over them.

“Those are to help with the long distance relationship, you know? The sexy phone calls? By the way, inside there are some articles explaining all the dips and tips about phone sex.” Sam says sending them a wink, completely ignoring the shocked expressions his friends are wearing.

“Next we have these for Tina and Shane!” Sam explains excited, handing the other two Asians two small boxes.

Tina smiles broadly and opens her box excited, just to find a single walkie talkie. Confused, the Brown student takes out the small device and notices that Shane received a similar one.

“Those are so you can talk to each other…” Sam explains.

“Thanks?” Tina replies confused, not really knowing how a pair of toy walkie talkies were going to work when Shane were in Baghdad.

“Your welcome, now let’s keep going…What do I have in here? Oh yes, this is for my friend Rachel Berry and  for the famous new member of this group, Mr. Wesley Grey…”

Rachel stands up excited and walks all the way to grab the box from Sam’s hands. Wesley smiles too and they both take their seats to open their presents. Inside their small bags there’s lingerie for Rachel and a Polaroid Camera for Wes.

“You’re welcome…” Sam simply says, causing the brunette and the blue-eyed actor to blush crimson.

“For Mr. Schue and Emma, Santa brought you some awesome stuff.” Sam exclaims excited handing them a single envelope.

Will frowns confused and with a small smile playing around his lips, the curly-haired man opens the envelope and finds a cd labeled with _‘Journey greatest hits_ ’ and a pair of pink ear plugs.

“Wow, Sam I-I don’t know what to say…” Will says trying to be polite, but really showing he’s not a bit thrilled by the weird gift.

“Oh don’t worry Mr. Schue, it’s really nothing I always thought Emma could use a pair of ear plugs you know? Because the babies cry a lot and that stuff and for you I thought about the music, so I made you a Sam’s special CD with all the Journey greatest hits just in case you’ve missed one.”

“Geehz…Thanks Sam” Will says trying not to laugh.

“What’s for me Santa?” Artie asks excited.

“For you my dear friend, Santa brought you this…” Sam says, handing Artie a gift card for Marshalls. “So you can go and shop all you want now that you two live together, well not all you want it only has 50, but Santa also brought one to your girl so if you are smart you can have 100!”

Madison burst into laugh and grabbing both cards, thanks Sam for the gift. “Thank you Sam, we really appreciate it”

“You’re welcome, now let’s move to the gifts for our hosts…” He says smirking at Brittany and Santana.

Brittany walks to Sam, and sitting at his lap, she says, “Oh Santa, I promise I’ve been good all year, so, I really hope you got me something good!”

Sam laughs and just hands the blonde the two bags, one for her and one for her wife.

Santana immediately opens the bag and gasp with wide eyes, tightening her lips trying to keep her jaw from dropping at the surprise gift. Inside there are what look like baby bottles and diapers. “What tha–?”

“I overheard at Kurt and Blaine’s wedding that you two were ready to…You know? Have little Santana and Brittany’s so I figured those could help with the expenses…”

“Sam, we are not–” Santana starts to saying while shaking her head slightly but, she’s quickly interrupted by Sam.

“Don’t thank me, it’s fine. Now, who are we missing? Oh yeah, the newlyweds!” He exclaims taking out the last set of gifts inside his bag. “Here, these are for you guys!”

Kurt and Blaine grab the two small rectangular boxes and before open them, they look at each other clearly afraid of what could be inside. Blaine takes a deep breath and opens the box, inside there are colorful bottles with what looks like lube, some boxes of textured condoms and a pair of handcuffs.

“Oh my gosh!” Kurt breaths blushing in the blink of an eye.

“I didn’t know how things work between you two so I covered the basics…I googled it and everything.” Sam says proud of his ingenious gift.

Kurt and Blaine look at each other and both try to hide their respective blushes. Part of them appreciated the gift, but it was still embarrassing enough to make them want to bury their faces or magically disappear.

Mercedes noticing that all her friends are either laughing or blushed as red as the Christmas spheres, takes out a small box and clearing her throat she says, “Baby hmmm…Santa also brought something for you…”

Confused, Sam frowns. He didn’t know his girlfriend had bought him something else. They had exchanged their personal gifts earlier in the morning. “What is it?” He asks confused.

“Oh it’s nothing…” Mercedes exclaims nonchalantly.

Sam frowns and opens the box. Inside there are 5 different vests that look like the ones Mr. Schue used to wore. “You know? For your new position…” Mercedes says as a matter of explanation causing the rest of the group to burst into laughing.

“Now you are really going to look like a Glee coach…No offense Mr. Schue!” Puck says still laughing.

“Oh shut up!” Sam exclaims, trying not to laugh, but giving up eventually because his girlfriend knew how to make him pay for his little jokes.

The laughter finally dies down and Brittany announces that dessert is ready, calling everyone back to their seats. Brittany, Blaine, Santana, Kurt and with a little help of Rachel, start bringing out the several dishes they made to fill the sweet tooth, all with Christmas themed treats. After asking what everyone wanted and piling out numerous scoops of delicious sweets onto people plates, everyone go to sit down and dig into their sugar overloaded plates while idling chatting with their friends, no, their family.

A few days after Christmas, Santana walks into the guest room of her home and starts to shake the guests that are peacefully sleeping embraced in the cocoon of blankets.

“Okay, Neal Patrick and David Burtka get up! It’s late and I need baby-face here to help me with my hair and makeup!” She exclaims pulling the covers and making the boys to get closer to each other.

“Kurt! Blaine!” Santana demands.

Kurt very slowly opens his eyes and look at his husband, who as usual is still sleeping like a baby even when Santana is practically yelling. “Now I remember why I was glad when you moved out!” Kurt mutters to the Latina.

“Yeah, yeah, whatever! I need you help! Come on! Get up!” She says, walking out of the room.

Blaine shifts a little when he notices Kurt standing up and still half asleep, he mumbles, “What is it?”

“Nothing honey…Keep sleeping, I’ll go help Santana with her hair.” Kurt replies, leaning over and kissing his husband’s forehead.

“Uhum…” Blaine mumbles already asleep.

A soft smile plays around Kurt’s lips by the sight of his sleeping husband. He allows himself two seconds just to admire the man he loves. He scans his body and smiles when he notices how those long lashes touch his cheekbones, how his face looks younger when he is relaxed and how fragile he looks when he clings to the blankets feeling Kurt’s absence.

Kurt is lost in his thoughts when Santana opens the door again, “Kurt!” She exclaims.

“Okay, okay…I’m coming…God Santana! Sometimes you’re really annoying!” He mutters as he follows the Latina to her room.

As soon as they enter the surprisingly not so small bedroom, Brittany who was drying her hair, exclaims excited, “Good morning Unicorn! Did you sleep well?”

Kurt nods and still sleepy he takes a seat at the edge of the bed. “Everything was fine until your wife here came to wake me!”

“Don’t be such a lady!” Santana immediately chirps in. “It’s not that early! And we need your help! Britt and I are walking the red carpet so we need to look stunning!”

Kurt frowns. “You two are walking the red carpet too?”

Santana nods before elaborating. “Yeah, I work for the same network and the producer said it was a good idea that I started to show my beautiful and gorgeous face to the world.”

Kurt laughs and starts helping Santana and Brittany to get ready. When Kurt is starting with Santana’s hair, the latina’s phone rings and she reaches in between her boobs to pull out her phone. Looking at the screen she lifts an eyebrow in curiosity. She slides the answer button and lifts the phone to her ear. “Hola Mami.”

A sweet voice at the other side of the line replies, _“Hola Mija,¿cómo estás? (Translation: How are you?)”_

Santana looks over to her wife who is giving her a curious look and mouths a _‘my mother’_ as a matter of explanation and then continues her call. “I’m doing good Mami, what’s going on are you okay?”

 _“I’m doing okay Mija, the question is how are you? I heard from your father that you contacted your Abuela?”_ Maribel inquires in a soft voice.

As Kurt pulls on part of her hair, Santana swats at his hand while giving him a pointed look before responding to her mother, “Wait, you talked to Papi about Abuela? She told him about the letter?”

_“Yes, he said that she mentioned she was contacted and informed that you had gotten married. It that true? I know how hard that must of been for you–”_

“No, no Mami. It wasn’t me actually.” Santana shifted in her seat, talking into the phone’s receiver as she runs her palms over her yoga pants. “That was actually Brittany who contacted her…” Santana trails off.

Santana can hear the surprise in her mother’s voice as she says, _“Brittany contacted your abuela? How? When?”_

Letting out a small sigh the younger Latina rubs at her temples, saying, “Long story short, I don’t know, really…Britt didn’t tell me. So I guess you’ll have to ask abuela about it, but not yet… I don’t what to push her…She wrote me a letter and that’s a huge step.”

_“A letter? Wow Santanita this is big; great actually. What did it say? Could you read it to me?”_

Taking a quick look around the room Santana decides to read the letter to her mom later, when she didn’t have a room full of ears. Especially knowing how emotional the letter made her every time she reread it, which had to be going on thirty times now in the past three months. “Lo siento, Mami, _(Translation: I’m sorry, Mom)_ right now I can’t. I’m getting ready for a network event and I really have to go…Lady Anderson-Hummel here is messing with my hair! But, I’ll call you later tonight to read you the letter, okay?”

_“Yes, of course corazoncita. I am so proud of you for making your dreams come true bebe. You take care of that wife of yours and give her a hug from me. I miss both of you girls! I know you’re a busy woman now but try not to forget about your dear old Mami. Te amo, mija.”_

A smile spread across Santana’s tan features at her mother’s words. “Te amo, Mami. I promise to hug Britt for you and I will call you later tonight. Hasta luego.”

After hearing her final goodbyes from her mother, Santana hangs up and looks at Kurt through the mirror. “Did marriage ruin your fashion style or something?”

Kurt rolls his eyes and drops the brush on the counter-top, huffing and crossing his arms over his chest. “Then do it yourself!” He turns and spots Brittany who is about to plug the curling iron in by the bath tub. “I’ll take care of your hair Britt.” He says softly before taking the curling iron from her hands and motioning for her to sit on the toilet as he starts on her long blonde hair and leaves Santana to her own devices.

A black limousine parks in front of the Ahmanson Theater in L.A. and immediately the staff of the network rushes to open the door for the stars of the show.

Wesley, wearing an Armani grey suit, climbs down first and quickly extends his hand to help his girlfriend out of the car. Rachel takes a deep breath and grabbing Wesley’s hand, she climbs down the car being very careful not to rip her elegant dress.

She’s wearing a navy blue long night Dior dress that hangs from all the right places making her look stunning. Her hair flows smoothly over her back covering one of her shoulders.

The two lovebirds start to walk through the red carpet and Rachel whispers, “Don’t let go of me okay? I think I’m going to pass out any minute…”

Wesley grabs Rachel’s hand even tighter and smiles for the cameras. “Relax baby, everything is going to be fine. I’m with you, just breathe and smile…” He whispers as the PR team guides them to the line where they are supposed to start walking and giving interviews.

Rachel nods smiling and in that moment, Felix, Wesley’s publicist approaches them. “Guys! Guys! I want you both smiling like kids on Christmas Day receiving your firsts bicycles,  okay? You’ll be doing interviews together and individually so be nice with the press and try to respond all the questions, keep the personal stuff a bit private to generate some buzz around you two, okay?” He exclaims excited.

“Felix, I told you I don’t want to use my relationship with Rachel as a business…” Wesley states clearly offended.

“I know Wes, but like it or not, it is and this is good for the show, people will be wanting to know what’s going on with you both and that’s going to give us more rating, so be a nice boy and smile…”

“Felix, I told that I don’t want them to think we’re just a PR couple! This is real and I really–” Wes is complaining again when Rachel raises her hand in a reassuring gesture and speaks up, “It’s okay Wes, I don’t mind…Felix is right, us being together is going to draw some attention to the show and that’s good. About us being a PR couple, don’t worry okay? We both know it’s not true and that’s all that matters, now let’s go and kick this red carpet!” Rachel exclaims excited.

“Listen to your girlfriend! She’s a smart girl!” Felix says before walking away.

Wes rolls his eyes and taking a deep breath he let’s out a soft _‘Okay’_

Rachel smiles and the two stars stand still at the first mark, where a line of photographers are taking the first official pictures. “Ready?” Wesley asks when they are walking.

“Ready.” Rachel replies with a smile and the photographers start to snap pictures of them in different positions. They both look stunning together and the photographers are having a feast with the exclusive pictures they are getting of the new couple and future stars of the _‘That’s Oh So Rachel!’_ show.

After 10 minutes of photographs, Rachel and Wesley move to the next line. Rachel is smiling broadly but her smile falls to the floor because in that moment, a even more stunning and gorgeous version of Chloe Smith steps in and starts to pose for the photographers in her elegant red dress.

Wesley feels Rachel’s insecurity and follows her gaze to see what happened. Noticing the beautiful blonde, Wes immediately says, “Babe, don’t let her steal your night! You’re the star, okay? And I know I already told you this, but you look stunning…”

Rachel smiles at her boyfriend and nods as they keep walking the red carpet.

The staff members ask them to stop for some more pictures, and later they lead them to the interviews area. Rachel and Wesley answer some questions together to some reporters and continue walking. Their fingers always intertwined.

At some point of the endless interviews, one of the interviewers, who’s asking Rachel questions about her life, suddenly exclaims, “Look who’s walking the red carpet right now!”

Rachel turns around and sees Santana making her entrance with Brittany by her side. They both look stunning, Santana’s wearing a beautiful black Prada dress and Brittany a Dolce and Gabbana soft pink dress. They both look stunning.

Rachel smiles at her friends from afar and returns her attention to the interviewer who keeps talking. “So, is it true what we heard?”

Rachel frowns confused and remembering all the tips they gave her about the tricky questions the reporters use to ask, she replies, “That depends of what you’ve heard.”

“We heard that the network is about to release a new show, and that the show is starred by no other than your high school friend Santana Lopez.”

Rachel laughs. “Well that’s true, but she is not my friend…” She immediately adds.

“No?” The interviewer asks clearly thinking he’s getting the next yellow note. His eyes opening widely.

“No, Santana and her wife are more like sisters to me…” Rachel replies with a smile.

Artie, Madison, Tina, Shane, Quinn, Puck, Sam, Mercedes, Will, Emma, Mike, Naomi, Kurt and Blaine are all waiting inside the theater waiting for the screening to start. They all are wearing their best suits and dresses, and taking some pictures to kill some time.

“Guys! Where’s Rachel and Wes?” Artie asks, when he notices that the room is getting crowded.

Blaine looks around and shrugs. “I don’t know, they must be here any minute I guess. The actors are already taking their seats so I think is about to start.” He says taking his seat next to his husband.

“And Brittany and Santana? Shouldn’t they be here with us?” Quinn asks.

Kurt shakes his head. “No, they were going to walk the red carpet too, so I think they will be here along with Rachel and Wes…”

Will smiles all proudly. “This is unbelievable! I mean, look at you guys, you’re really making all your dreams come true! I’m so proud of all of you!” He exclaims wearing a huge grin.

“Awww that’s so sweet Mr. Schuester!” Mercedes says, clearly touched by her emotional former teacher.

“We couldn’t have done any of this without your help.” Rachel chirps in, as her, Wesley, Brittany and Santana join the small group.

“Rachel!” Mr. Schue exclaims excited. “You look stunning! And look at you two!” He points at Brittany and Santana. “Gorgeous woman shining on the red carpet!”

The three girls blush and smile coyly at their former teacher and friend. “And you Mr. Grey…It’s nice to see you again…” He adds shaking hands with Wesley.

“I’m just Wes, my dad is still Mr. Grey…” Wesley replies.

Will just nods and gives the T.V. actor a genuine smile. Rachel, turns around and starts to greet her friends. “Guys! I’m so glad to see you all here! Thank you so much for staying after Christmas to be here with me tonight! Especially you Mr. Schue, I wasn’t lying earlier. Any of this could’ve happened without your help, so if I’m here tonight it’s because of you…” She trails off getting a little emotional.

Mr. Schue closes the small distance between them and gives Rachel a tight hug, whispering into her ear. “I’m so proud of you!”

Rachel murmurs a soft _‘Thank you’_ just when the producer of the show takes the small stage of the theater and clears his throat into the microphone to draw the attention of all the guests. “Good evening ladies and gentlemen. I’m so glad to have you all here tonight, press friends, colleagues and members of the cast…” He says while all the guest take their seats and pay attention to the man in the stand.

“Today I have the pleasure, no the honor, to present to you this new project we’ve been working on for months. Throughout my career as a T.V. producer I’ve seen thousands of stars come and go through this halls, but I had never, ever, had the pleasure of working with someone as talented and committed as Ms. Rachel Berry…”

The whole theater erupts into a cheerful round of applause and the producer just smiles until the applause cease. “To say that Ms. Berry is talented is an understatement, but I won’t tell you more about her. No, I’ll let her work speak for me, so ladies and gentlemen, buckle up your seat belts because this ride is about to start!” He exclaims excited. “This is…That’s Oh So Rachel-Episode 1: Pilot”

The lights of the theater go off and Rachel, grabbing her boyfriend’s hand, takes a deep breath and starts to watch the result of so many months of intense work.

 _(That’s Oh So Rachel!-Pilot)_ The soft sound of some birds singing nearby and the sun slipping through the window make the brunette woman to shift uncomfortably and open her eyes. It’s a bright new early morning and the city that never sleeps is already buzzing with activity. Rachel, still wearing her night mask, stands up and takes a deep breath. She loves her new life in her recently refurbished over the top and luxurious apartment in front of Central Park, she loves to wake up next to her husband Ben, and hear her children laugh…And of course she loves being able to say that she became the star she always dreamed she would be.

 _(That’s Oh So Rachel!-Voiceover) “Being a star is not easy, but being a star like me is the hardest. I have to wake up every morning, do my beauty routine, wake up the kids, give them some breakfast, prepare their lunch, take them to school, come back and pick up my stuff to finally go to the theater, to Broadway! My one true love! Sorry Ben, I love you very much, but Broadway is Broadway!”_ She lets out a soft sigh. _“Imagine doing all that just to be able to be Rachel Kerry! Hollywood’s most profitable star in the past 10 years!”_ Rachel internally says as she jumps out of bed, careful not to wake her half-naked husband, and makes her way to the bathroom.

 _(That’s Oh So Rachel!-Voiceover) “Since I was a baby I always thought about me as the brightest star in the firmament, and I wasn’t mistaken. I mean my two Tony’s and the 3 Academy Awards nominations I’ve had so far speak for myself, but now that I’m older I realize that not all of my dreams came true or at least not the way I wanted them to be. I didn’t marry a famous movie star, but I had the chance to marry my first love, that silly boy that gave me free drinks at that old bar in my hometown. I didn’t have the chance to sing next to Whitney Texas because unfortunately she passed away just a few years ago, I didn’t get all the roles I planned to have, but I did the one I always dreamed to do…Funny Girl!”_ She continues as she looks at herself in the mirror.

 _(That’s Oh So Rachel!-Voiceover) “I remember that time like if it was yesterday! It was my first Broadway show and I was very nervous, my best friends were all there and life was far less complicated. Ben, my now husband, and I were going through this honeymoon phase in our relationship and everything was fine. At that time I thought I had everything I’d always wanted…but I was mistaken…now I have everything I’ve always wanted. And probably in 10 years more, I’ll be saying the same thing, because that’s what life is about…you don’t know what you’re missing in your life until you have the chance to experience it…”_ She says while she brushes her teeth.

_(That’s Oh So Rachel!-Voiceover) “Anyways, everything I know is that life is uncertain and as every story, mine was written in several different colors and pages…Do you wanna now how Rachel Kerry, the annoying little girl from Lincoln, Ohio ended up being the famous T.V / Hollywood / Broadway actress? Well, this is my story…”_

The screen goes black and Rachel, still grabbed from Wesley’s hand takes another deep breath. “Here we go” She whispers and Wes just leans over and kisses her cheek. The screen lights up again and the show entree starts to play. The voice of Rachel singing as Rachel Kerry starts to resound around the theater.

_(Rachel singing as Rachel Kerry)…Break down, break down, break down. I was scared to death I was losing my mind. Break down. I couldn’t close my eyes I was pacing all night, oh, no. I think I found the light at the end of the tunnel (and my doubts). I couldn’t find the truth I was going under…_

As the screen displays the intro for the show, which consists of a rewind of Rachel’s life, the group of friends gather there start to look at each other recognizing some of the outfits the other characters are wearing.

_(Rachel singing as Rachel Kerry)…But I won’t hide inside, I gotta get out, gotta get out, gotta get out, gotta get out. Lonely inside and light the fuse. Light it now, light it now, light it now…_

Puck, clearly intrigued by the weirdness of the show, taps on Rachel’s shoulder and whispers, “Hey Rachel! Hmmm I have a question, is the guy portraying me as hot as I am or just standard hotness?”

_(Rachel singing as Rachel Kerry)…And now I will start living today, today, today. I close the door. I got this new beginning and I will fly, I’ll fly like a cannonball, like a cannonball, like a cannonball. I’ll fly, I’ll fly, I’ll fly like a cannonball…_

Rachel chuckles a little and turns around to see her friend. He’s genuinely curious to know, so Rachel, trying to humor her friend, replies with a soft voice, “Standard hotness Puck, nobody can compete with your handsomeness.” making Puck smile proudly.

_(Rachel singing as Rachel Kerry)…Freedom, I let go of fear and the peace came quickly. Freedom, I was in the dark and then it hit me. I chose suffering and in pain in the falling rain. I know, I gotta get out into the world again…_

Mercedes seizing the small chance to speak chirps in and says, “And I really hope that the fake version of one Mercedes Jones is one hell of a singer, otherwise I’m sorry Rachel, but I’ll have to sue the producers…”

_(Rachel singing as Rachel Kerry)…But I won’t hide inside, I gotta get out, gotta get out, gotta get out, gotta get out. Lonely inside and light the fuse. Light it now, light it now, light it now…_

Rachel just laughs, but Sam, who was listening to the whole exchange between his girlfriend and Rachel, asks intrigued, “And speaking about Sue…Who’s going to play coach Sue?”

Rachel laughs again and murmurs, “Jane Lynch.”

_(Rachel singing as Rachel Kerry)…And now I will start living today, today, today. I close the door. I got this new beginning and I will fly, I’ll fly like a cannonball, like a cannonball, like a cannonball. I’ll fly, I’ll fly, I’ll fly like a cannonball…_

“The famous actress, the one that did the role of Miss Hannigan in the revival of Annie?” Tina asks out of curiosity, overhearing the conversation happening in the rows below her.

Rachel just nods and tries to focus again on the screen. The song is almost ending and she knows that now it’s time for the real show and so, she starts to get nervous again.

_(Rachel singing as Rachel Kerry)…Break down, I was scared to death I was losing my mind. Break down, I gotta get out into the world again…_

Wesley feeling that her girlfriend is anxious again gets closer to her and passes an arm around her. “Relax, everything is going to be fine. Your friends will love the show, everybody will love the show…now just take some deep breaths and enjoy”.

Rachel nods and does what she was told to. _‘Everything is going to be fine’_ she tells to herself.

_(Rachel singing as Rachel Kerry)…And now I will start living today, today, today. I close the door. I got this new beginning and I will fly, I’ll fly like a cannonball, like a cannonball, like a cannonball. I’ll fly, I’ll fly, I’ll fly like a cannonball, like a cannonball, like a cannonball. I’ll fly, I’ll fly, I’ll fly like a cannonball…_

The song comes to an end and the date _‘2009’_ appears on the screen. Rachel wearing a similar outfit to the ones she used to wear back in high school appears on the screen as she makes her way inside William McKinsey high school. She passes next to a dumpster where a group of athletes jerks are throwing a sweet innocent boy into it, ruining his designer clothes in the process.

 _(That’s Oh So Rachel!-Voiceover) “High school is hard. Not everyone has the chance to be a popular kid, those spots are reserved for the cheerleaders–”_ She says while looking to a group of beautiful cheerleaders who are playing with their pompons. _“–and the members of the sports teams”_ She continues while giving a quick glimpse to the boys by the dumpster. “ _Us, the underdogs, the misfits–”_ She adds looking at the guy in wheelchair, the boy at the dumpster and the two girls walking next to her. _“We don’t belong here…for us high school is a night–”_ She’s saying when a cool red slushie hits her in the face.

Kurt looks back and forth between his husband and his friends. They all are lost in the show, but he finds it hard to watch. He senses some kind of Deja Vu and he doesn’t know why. “Ummm, is it just me or I’m watching my life passing in front of my eyes?”

Blaine squeezes his husband’s hand tightly in a reassuring gesture and whispers, “Shhh this is just a fake version of your life, don’t worry you’re more handsome than that actor…” He whispers kissing his husband’s cheek.

Kurt laughs softly and says, “Thanks, but really, I don’t know why, but I think we’re watching a documentary of our lives…”

After the successful screening of Rachel’s show, the group makes the short trip to a famous and fancy restaurant in Santa Monica, Mélisse. Rachel can’t stop smiling and all her friends are cheering her up and telling her wonderful reviews about the show.

When they enter the place, Wes immediately ask for a table for 18. The host quickly guides them to the fair end of the place and helps them settle in the huge table.

“A waiter will be right back to take your order, may I offer you something to drink?” The hosts asks politely.

“Bring me the best bottle of champagne you have please!” Wesley exclaims. “We are celebrating!”

“Right away sir!” The groomed man says already walking away from the table.

Some minutes later, a waiter comes back with two bottles of the addictive bubbly drink. They all wait until everybody has a glass in front of them and Mr. Schue stands up.

“I want to propose a toast to Rachel and Wesley! May this show be the start of a very successful career!”

“Cheers!” They all yell clinking their glasses in the air and taking a small sip of the golden drink.

Once the dinner is served and all of them are enjoying their respective meals, the group of friends ease into easy conversation.

Tina, still chewing some of her Alaskan king crab, speaks up, “No, but really Rachel, the show is amazing! I loved it! The songs are so catchy and the story goes smoothly!”

“Yeah, it is good!” Quinn agrees. “Though I didn’t like the way the writers wrote the fake version of me. I kind of feel that they make me look like a heartless bitch…” She adds frowning slightly.

“That’s because you are…” Santana jokes causing the blonde girl to roll her eyes.

Puck grabs his girlfriend’s hand and gives her a quick peck on the lips. “Don’t listen to Mrs. Pierce-Bitch-Lopez, that’s just a T.V. show and we all know the real Lucy Quinn Fabray”

Quinn smiles softly and rests her head on Puck’s shoulder while the conversation about the show continues.

“Rachel, can I suggest something?” Artie suddenly asks. Rachel nods and the copper-haired man continues, “Please, please, I’m begging you! Don’t let the writers do more than 3 season because we all know they are just going to ruin the show!” He states.

“That’s true.” Madison agrees with her boyfriend. “A few years ago, I was watching this show about a group of friends who were in high school together and it was good until the writers lost their minds and stop caring about the characters. After season 3 the show just became a joke and eventually it got cancelled…” She explains with a sad expression.

“Yeah, listen to them Rachel. I also watched that show and yeah the writers ruined it for me!” Brittany says, joining the conversation.

“I will…” Rachel smiles trying to humor her friends.

“Okay, okay enough of T.V. shows!” Mercedes exclaims. “Let’s talk about what we are going to do tomorrow! It’s the last day of the year and I didn’t stay here just to spend New Year’s eating ice cream while watching the fireworks from Rachel’s spare’s room window”

“Yeah, we should celebrate!” Sam chirps in.

“Yeah!” Blaine agrees. “What did you guys have in mind? You mentioned something about a party at our wedding.” He says looking at Rachel.

“Umm, well yeah I wanted to plan a huge party, but with the whole last minute Christmas reunion and the show interviews and promotion I didn’t have time, did you guys plan something?” The brunette asks, looking at Brittany and Santana.

The married couple look at each other and shake their heads at the same time. “Well, we didn’t prepare anything special like for Christmas, but maybe, we could make a party in one of our places…” Brittany suggests.

Santana immediately shakes her head. “No offense, but our places are too small, you saw what happened in Christmas. We need to rent some place, a bigger place.”

They all start to look at each other clearly thinking of places where they can throw a proper New Year’s party.

“I got it!” Brittany yells, drawing everybody’s attention. “We can do the party at P.L.A.D. We have plenty of space and it would be for free because I own the place!”

“You’re a genius!” Rachel exclaims already excited for the upcoming party.

“That’s perfect Britt!” Kurt agrees. “Now we just need to organize and buy all the stuff so we can have a decent party!”

“Sounds like a plan!” Quinn and Puck say at the same time.

“Then let’s start!” Mike adds clapping his hands.

“Okay!” Kurt replies, already taking out his notebook. “We are 18, well 19 if we count baby Daniel and–” He saying when Mr. Schue interrupts.

“Guys! Guys! Thanks for including us in your plan, but we’re leaving in the morning…”

“Why?” Puck asks.

“We want to spend the last day of the year with Will’s parents.” Emma explains smiling her usual kind smile.

“Well in that case…” Sam adds, “Let’s make a pre-New Year’s toast while you two are still here.” He says raising his glass in the air.

The rest of the table join and Sam says, “To a new year full of adventures!”

“To a new year full of success!” Rachel adds.

“To a new year full of emotions!” Tina says.

“To a new year full of music!” Artie pipes in.

“To a new year full of work!” Mike says.

“To a new year full of kisses!” Brittany says kissing Santana’s cheek quickly

“To a new year full of love!” Blaine says.

“Cheers!” They all say at the same time and Will, before clinking his glass with the rest of the group, adds, “To new directions!”

On New Year’s eve Rachel’s apartment looks like a honeycomb in full swing. They all agreed to gather there to prepare snacks and food, and to split in groups to decorate Brittany’s dance studio.

“Okay, so Lucy Caboosey, Wheezy, Prince Charming, Lil Miss Blondie over there, and gay Clark Kent can take care of the food.” Santana says.

“Who?” Tina asks confused, not getting half of the nicknames.

Santana rolls her eyes and explains, “Quinn, Mercedes, Wesley, Madison, and Blaine…”

“Oh, okay…Yeah and all of us will be at Brittany’s dance studio taking care of the decoration and setting the tables and all that stuff.” Tina says with a simple shrug.

“Okay, well then let’s move!” Quinn says clapping her hands in motion and making all their friends to start moving to do what they are supposed to be doing.

Ten minutes later, Rachel and Wesley’s place is finally in a peaceful silence. “I love them, I really do, but I also love when they are not all in the same room.” Mercedes says as she starts to take out some ingredients from the fridge.

“I know! I was about to go crazy when they all started to discuss about the teams! I was like, please just go and let us take care of the food.” Quinn agrees with the soul diva.

“And speaking about food…” Wesley interrupts the little conversation. “What are we cooking?”

“For the appetizers I was thinking about this…” Blaine says, showing the rest of his friends the screen of his phone where the recipe for Baked Brie with Caramelized Pears, Shallots and Thyme is displayed.

“That’s sounds yummy, I agree let’s cook that…and for the main dishes?” Madison asks.

“Hmmm I thought about some danish meatballs, but then I remembered we need like two different menus because we have some vegetarians in our group so we need to have at least two dishes…” Blaine says scrolling down the recipes page.

“Don’t worry about that Blaine, we can make the same dish just replace the meat with some mushroom or something, Rachel won’t mind I’m sure.” Wesley says matter of factly.

“Okay, then let’s make the Danish Meatballs with Dill sauce and we can replace the meatballs for some vegetables.” Mercedes says grabbing Blaine’s phone.

“Sounds awesome, we can split too. Wesley, Blaine and I can take care of the main dish and you girls can work on the appetizers and some snacks, sounds good?” Madison suggests.

“Sounds perfect!” Quinn and Mercedes reply at the same time already getting in action. They had to prepare a lot of food and time was ticking.

Down the left hallways inside P.L.A.D. the music is already reverberating through the speakers and against the walls which are now lined with blue and silver stars. The ceiling is littered with shimmering silver streamers that have stars at its ends. White, silver and blue balloons have drifted throughout the large dance room, from the ceiling to the floor. A large banner that reads _‘Happy New Years’_ hangs in the front of the room covering the top half the the room’s mirrors. To the far right of the room, placed against the back wall, is a long rectangular table cover with a black table cloth that’s dusted with shiny glitter. The table is posed as a makeshift bar. There are four silver tin buckets of ice with bottles of champagne and liquor on one side of the table and a mixture of champagne flutes and shot glasses on the other side. Standing behind the makeshift bar are Shane, Puck and Sam smiling and having a lot of fun as they try their hand at mixing the drinks and spinning the glass bottles in their hands trying to impress the others as they pretend to be their bartenders.

“You’re doing it wrong Sam!” Puck exclaims, looking how the blonde is struggling with the martini mixer. “You have to shake it like this.” The military man says, shaking the aluminum glass in the air at the same time he rocks his body in a sensual way.

Sam laughs and rolls his eyes. “Now you’re doing those moves wrong!” He says matter of factly. If there’s someone in the room who knows how to move his body, that’s Sam Evans. “You need to move the hips back and forth slowly, letting your body go with the flow…” Sam explains moving his hips.

In that moment, Mike and Naomi who are wedded to each other as Koalas to bamboos, walk to the improvised bar and ask for a drink. “Hey man!” Mike exclaims. “We want two special drinks!”

“Right away!” Puck exclaims excited, and looking to Shane he adds, “Two special E-9’s for my friends please mate.”

“Two first sergeants, working on that!” Shane exclaims already mixing several bottles of different colors and adding some ice cubes to some red cups.

“My mate here has an excellent hand with drinks, you’ll see.” Puck says as Shane hands the couple their respective drinks.

Mike and Naomi look at the amber liquid with scrutinizing eyes and then look at each other. They are not sure if this drink is even legal.

“What’s this?” Mike asks smelling the drink and getting some hints of vodka, rum and some other strong beverages.

“This is the very special E-9, don’t ask what it has just drink it and embrace the strong feeling!” Puck replies excited.

“Okay…” Mike and Naomi shrug at the same time and take a quick sip of the weird drink.

“Wow, Ummm…I mean, this actually tastes really good!” Mike says excited, clearly enjoying the drink.

“It tastes good.” Naomi agrees. “But I don’t know why I suspect I’ll end up wasted with just this cup…” She adds showing a bit of concern.

Mike laughs at his girlfriend and grabbing her from the waist, he says, “Then let’s go dance so we can sweat the alcohol!”

Naomi nods and just laughs. She knows that her boyfriend’s solution for everything is always dancing.

As the notes of _Take it off_ by Ke$ha start to play, Mike and Naomi make their way dancing to the center of the room, where an improvised dance floor was previously set. Following the upbeat tempo of the song, the two lovebirds start to dance around not really paying attention to their surrounding until they stumble across Brittany and Santana, who are caught in a heated kiss in the middle of the dance floor.

“Do you mind?” Santana exclaims with a bit of sass laced in her words, “We are kinda busy here.” She states before turning her attention back to her wife and once again capturing Brittany’s bottom lip between her own, drawing her in for another kiss as their body’s still move along to the beat of the music on their own accord.

“I’m sorry but this is the dance floor, at least go to the bathroom or something!” Mike exclaims trying not to laugh at his lustful friends.

“Sorry Mike, you’re right.” Brittany says, trying to style her hair. “We just got carried away with the music, but let’s dance all together!” She exclaims moving her hips and smiling at the Asian couple.

Mike immediately smiles back and starts to mimic the blonde’s moves. They always understood each other on the dance floor. So without saying anything, the two friends start to improvised a clearly unrehearsed, but quite frankly impressive, choreography to _If I had you_ by Adam Lambert song causing all their friends to stop their respective activities just to watch the two professional dancers move their bodies on the dance floor.

Quinn clearly overexcited starts to cheer from afar. “That’s right Britt! Show them why we were the unholy trinity! Rock those hips girl!”

Mercedes, who was seated at the same table with Quinn and Tina, starts to laugh at her friend’s antics. Quinn always acted funny when she was starting to get drunk. “I think you’ll have to ease your pase Fabray…If you keep drinking those First Sergeant drinks we made you’re going to lose control…”

Quinn laughs a bit loudly and just nods putting her red cup down.

“I think…” Tina says, joining the conversation. “That it was a ve-very, very bad idea to let our men take care of the bar. I mean, it’s barely 10 and I’m already seeing double.”

Mercedes and Quinn let out a giggle and Tina continues, “If we continue like this. We-we are going to end up dead drunk before midnight.”

Mercedes shakes her head and puts her cup down. “You’re right, we should probably stop now. We don’t want to be unconscious before midnight. We have to make the official countdown and kiss our love’s…”

“Yes! Kisses!” Tina exclaims excited.

“Did you guys notice that all of us, and I mean _all_ of us have our special others with us tonight! That’s amazing! Tina has Shane, you have Sam.” The blonde adds pointing to Mercedes. “I have Puck, Kurt has Blaine, Santana has Brittany, Rachel has Wesley–” She’s saying when the pitchy voice of  the former Broadway star interrupts the conversation.

“Excuse me? What were you saying about me?” Rachel asks, “I clearly heard Rachel has Wesley…”

Tina, Quinn and Mercedes just laugh, but Quinn, noticing that the brunette is really expecting for an answer, says, “Nothing we were just pointing out that tonight all of us have our respective significant other with us. It’s amazing!”

“You’re right!” Rachel exclaims excited. She hadn’t thought about that. “I think it was a good year in love terms for all of us, right baby?” She adds, turning around and giving a quick peck on the lips to her boyfriend.

Wesley just nods and smiles at the brunette. Rachel smiles back and focusing her attention back to her friends, she says, “We were on our way to the table, do you guys want something to eat?”

The three girls shake their heads at the same time and Tina says. “No, thanks Rachel.  I’m full! If I eat something else I’m going to explode!”

Rachel chuckles a little. “Okay, well we haven’t eaten so we’ll be right back…” She adds already pulling Wes from his shirt collar and making their way to the food table.

When Wesley and Rachel make it there, they immediately grab some fancy disposable plates they bought for the occasion and stand right behind Artie and Madison who are currently filling what look like 4 plates of food.

“Put more meatballs in my plate babe!” Artie says as Madison quickly adds a new spoonful to the already over-served plate.

“Artie you’re going to eat all that?” Wesley asks smiling friendly to the copper-haired man.

“Yes! They are delicious!” Artie exclaims liking his lips to highlight the fact that indeed the danish meatballs were delicious. “You were on the cooking team, right? Who prepared this lovely, lovely and delicious meatballs? Madi says that all of you, but I don’t believe her. I know this must be either your work or Blaine’s.”

Madison rolls her eyes to her boyfriend and Wesley laughs a little. “We actually did it together, I mean Blaine and I, though your girlfriend here prepared the sauce so it’s actually the work of all of us.” He replies, being the gentleman he is.

“See? I told you!” Madison scolds. “Now, can we go eat, our plates are getting cold!” She demands pushing Artie’s wheelchair.

When Artie and Madison reach their table, Kurt and Blaine who were there, immediately stand up and help Artie and Madison with the plates.

“Thanks guys!” Blaine says, grabbing two of the four plates that the couple had served.

“I hope what we served you it’s okay.” Madison says taking a seat next to her boyfriend.

“It’s perfect!” Kurt exclaims already taking a bite from the food.

The four friends start to dig into their plates, eating as much as they can because the food is simply delicious. “This is delicious honey.” Kurt says giving his husband a quick kiss on the cheek as a reward for his cooking skills.

“Thanks” Blaine simply replies smiling all lovingly to his husband.

“Awww look at that!” Artie exclaims, making fun of his friends. “One month of marriage and you still look at each other as if there was no one else in the world…Aren’t they cute?” He asks to his girlfriend.

Madison just nods smiling to the now flushed couple while Artie continues, “By the way guys, I didn’t ask you but, have you had the chance to watch my wedding gift? Did you like it?”

“We haven’t had much time Artie.” Kurt explains. “We came back from the honeymoon and it took us some time to get back to reality and then we came here for Christmas and well…we’re still here.” He adds laughing a little.

“But we promise to watch it as soon as we’re back home!” Blaine chirps in, not wanting to let down his friend.

“Okay! And please let me know what you think of it, it’s one of my finest works so far. I’m sure you’re going to love it!” Artie exclaims excited.

“I’m sure we will, I’m sure we will…” Kurt replies friendly and in that moment the music seized.

A chorus of “hey’s”, “what happened?”, and complains about the lack of music start to echo through the room.

Puck, who was standing in front of the jukebox, clears his throat. “Stop complaining okay? This will just take a second…” He says looking at the Latina who keeps complaining. Apparently she was having a really good time at the dance floor.

“I just wanted, as a member of the American Air Force, to formally start this party.” Puck says raising his red cup in the air. “Cheers! For the best new year’s party ever!” He exclaims quickly pressing a button on the iPad’s jukebox screen and making the music to come to life.

The notes of _Dark Horse_ by Katy Perry start to echo through the room and Mercedes, Sam, Shane, Tina, Quinn, Puck, Artie, Madison, Wesley, Rachel, Kurt and Blaine join Brittany, Santana, Mike and Naomi at the dance floor.

Without realizing time starts to fly by as the group of friends start to dance their bodies off on the dance floor. This is, in Puck’s words, the best New Year’s party ever.

The party continues and the group of friends scatter around the dance studio dancing, drinking and mingling. Rachel has her arms wrapped around Wesley’s neck and her head rested on his chest as the sway together along with the music. Between dancing and exchanging soft kisses the brunette notices Blaine standing alone by the iPad set up with the screen of a jukebox, flipping through the music options.

“Where’s Kurt?” She asks, lifting her head to meet her boyfriend’s eyes.

Pressing a kiss to Rachel’s temple Wesley replies while running his hands up and down the short girls sides. “With Blaine I guess…”

“No, he’s not with him…Blaine is over there and–” She trails off, letting her arms fall from around Wesley’s neck and scanning the room, quickly noticing Kurt standing alone at the studio’s double doors that are propped open letting the night’s breeze flow in and out the crowded room.

Frowning, the brunette quickly kisses his boyfriend’s cheek and whispering that she’ll be back in a minute, she makes her way to her long time friend.

“Kurt…” She whispers making her presence known as she walks up behind the blue-eyed man accidentally causing him to jump a little.

“Oh-Hi Rachel…You scared me!” He places his hand over his heart.

“I’m sorry…” Rachel apologizes and stands next to her friend. “Are you alright? I saw Blaine alone and–”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I just needed some air and Blaine knows when to give me some space. He knows me too well.” Kurt says smiling. It is true, his husband knew that sometimes he needed some time alone, and Kurt was thankful that he didn’t even have to ask, because with one look, Blaine could see Kurt’s suffocated mind and he always walked away, but not before kissing him quickly.

“Then I’ll leave you alone…” Rachel says, clearly getting the message, but Kurt grabs her hand and shakes his head. “No, stay. It’s fine…I was on my way back to the noise.” He says smiling.

Rachel smiles friendly. “You look different…” The brunette states looking at her best friend’s face.

“I am, or at least I feel different…” Kurt confesses.

“You look happy too…” Rachel adds, admiring that silly smile that her friend has been wearing since he said _‘I do’_.

“That’s because I am. I’m very happy.” Kurt says. “Before I thought I knew what it was to be really happy, but all that time I was mistaken. These past few weeks have been the best in my entire life! I can’t say I’m happy because that word can’t begin to describe how I truly feel!” Kurt exclaims with a huge smile plastered on his pale face.

“I’m truly happy for you Kurt. If there’s someone here that deserved a happy ending that’s you. I’m glad you have Blaine and that you two are starting this amazing life together. I’m sure that you two will always be together…you practically were born to be together.” Rachel says.

Kurt smiles fondly. “Thanks Rachel…I believe that too. I must admit that before, I was scared of this huge step we took, but now I’m sure is the best decision I could have made! He’s all I’ve ever wanted and even more!” He expresses, feeling his heart melting with just the thought of his amazing life next to his husband.

“It’s funny, right?” Rachel says, looking into the distance, getting lost in some of her thoughts. “A few years ago we were just two annoying selfish kids who competed against each other for the solos on Glee Club and now here we are…Both completely changed! In fact now that I think about it, we all have changed. I mean, just look at us, we are all grown ups and our lives are taking very different paths.” She says taking a moment to take a deep breath. Suddenly this conversation was taking a path neither of them was sure it was the best way to start a new year, but it was inevitable. Things were changing and they both knew this was one of the few chances they would have to talk at each other, like the used to do when they both were just kids.

“You and Blaine are going to make your lives together in the big old city. Santana and Brittany will stay here as the next Latina famous T.V. star and the successful entrepreneur and dancer that L.A. has been waiting for. Quinn and Puck are finally together and most likely will be the next ones to get married -Mark my words-” She states making Kurt to laugh a little.

“Sam and Mercedes are together and sharing with each other what they love. Tina finally found a straight boyfriend.” Rachel says laughing along with Kurt. That joke was never going to get old. “Mike is happy doing what he loves and has a lovely girl. Artie is becoming the next Steven Spielberg of our generation and I…Well, I’m happy too. I have Wes, I have my work and I have you guys!”

Kurt smiles and squeezes the brunette’s hand tightly. “But you do realize that every day is going to be more difficult for us to be like this…Right?” He says, pointing to the party where all their friends and significant others are having fun while laughing and dancing.

Rachel’s nods, a hint of sadness crossing through her eyes. “I know…And although I’m sad about it, I think it’s the price we’ll have to pay for becoming adults, right?”

Kurt nods and they hug each other. Without really saying it out loud, these two friends know that it’s going to take a long time before they are together again. Neither of them say it, but they feel it.

“I love you.” Rachel whispers. “Never forget it okay?”

“I love you too Rachel…” Kurt replies, trying to keep his emotions at bay.

In that moment Blaine pokes through the door. “Guys it’s almost time!” He says pointing to his clock. Rachel and Kurt smile one last time at each other and join the party again. Kurt immediately lacing fingers with his husband and Rachel making her way to find Wes.

“Before this year ends, I think we should probably sing one last song together!” Artie proposes.

A chorus of _‘yes’s’_ and _‘yeah’s’_ echo through the room as Sam immediately makes his way to the jukebox and selects a song. The notes of _Kiss me at midnight,_ by N’SYNC start to sound through the speakers.

_(Sam)…Kiss me at midnight…5…4…3…2…1…_

Taking the lead, Sam runs next to his girlfriend and while hugging her tightly, he starts to sing.

_(Mercedes and Sam)…Kiss me at midnight, dance into the morning light. Party into the new year. All of my friends are here and when the time is right. Kiss me at midnight (kiss)…_

Mercedes, infected by her boyfriend’s enthusiasm, starts to sing to and the two lovers join the voices to bring to life the 90’s pop song.

_(Wesley)…I’ve been waiting for this special night, to be with you…_

Wesley, making his best portraying of a band boy guy, takes the lead in the next part of the song, always looking at Rachel who obviously can’t stop smiling.

_(Rachel)…The colors of Christmas are still shining bright, and I know what we’re gonna do…_

Following her boyfriend’s steps, Rachel steps up next to him and joins the song, singing the next part.

_(Santana)…Anticipating, music is playing…The magic is in the air…_

Santana, not wanting to miss the opportunity to sing too, steps up waving her hands before pointing to her wife next to her letting the blonde take over and continue the song.

_(Brittany)…All through the season, you’ve been the reason I have so much love to share…_

Brittany smiles widely and laces her fingers with her wife’s. Singing the lines of the song as she leans into Santana’s side, both smiling while looking into each others eyes.

_(Artie and Madison)…Kiss me at midnight, dance into the morning light. Party into the new year. All of my friends are here and when the time is right. Kiss me at midnight (kiss)…_

Artie and Madison take over harmonizing their voices to sing the chorus while the now brunette, spins her boyfriend’s wheelchair following the beat of the song.

_(Blaine)…We’ve been making promises in the dark, our resolutions. As a brand new year is about to start and we’re together…_

Still clung to his husband’s arm Blaine takes the lead in the next part smiling at Kurt when the words _‘we’re together’_ come out from his lips.

_(Kurt)…Celebrating, no more waiting. Our time has arrived…_

Kurt smiles back and cupping his husband’s mouth with his hand, he continues where Blaine left off.

_(Mike and Naomi)…Feel the beat of my heart, as the countdown starts. Just look into my eyes…_

Mike and Naomi join their voices to sing also a small part of the song. It’s clear now that everyone is getting a chance to be part of the performance.

_(Quinn and Puck)…Kiss me at midnight, dance into the morning light. Party into the new year. All of my friends are here and when the time is right. Kiss me at midnight (kiss)…_

Quinn and Puck after sharing a quick kiss, join their voices to take over the chorus, smiling and dancing while they do it.

_(Tina and Shane)…Baby it’s New Years Eve, a time we can believe In making wishes. Dreams come true just for me and you…_

Tina and Shane follow their friends and sing together too. Everyone is surprised because Shane, although he’s not a singer, is not that bad. At least he sings better than Mike used to sing back when he was dating the Asian girl.

_(All)…Kiss me at midnight, dance into the morning light. Party into the new year. All of my friends are here and when the time is right. Kiss me at midnight (kiss). Kiss me at midnight, dance into the morning light. Party into the new year. All of my friends are here and when the time is right, Kiss me at midnight (kiss)…_

For the last part of the song, the 16 friends, stand side by side and sing out loud the last two choruses. Everyone is smiling, dancing and enjoying the chance to sing with their best friends.

When the songs comes to an end they all look at each other and smile. It was always nice to sing one last time together.

Looking at his clock, Mike realizes it’s already 11:59pm, the new year is practically here so raising his glass and quickly glancing towards his girlfriend so she can join him, they yell, “Ten!” starting the official countdown.

Tina and Shane, raise their glasses and together they exclaim “Nine!”

“Eight!” Artie and Madison yell, joining the countdown.

“Seven!” Sam and Mercedes exclaim excited.

“Six!” Quinn and Puck yelled back.

“Five!” Brittany yells, bouncing on her feet.

“Four!” Santana says, grabbing her wife’s hand.

“Three!” Blaine chirps in squeezing his husband’s hand tightly. He’s very excited.

“Two!” Kurt exclaims as excited as his husband.

“One!” Finally, Rachel and Wesley finish the countdown.

The clock marks 12 and the group of friends exclaimed “Happy New Year!” at the same time raising their cups in the air and kissing their respective partners.

_What better way to start a new year than surrounded by friends and kissing the love of your life?_

Tina and Shane are leaning against the back wall of the spacious dancing room at P.L.A.D., the fireworks that were playing outside are now over and they have officially starting a new year.

“What do you think is going to happen this year?” Tina asks out of nowhere, while she presses a sweet kiss on her boyfriend’s jaw.

“I don’t know…” Shane replies. “The future is uncertain, but of one thing I’m sure…” He says smiling sweetly at the Asian girl.

Quirking an eyebrow, intrigued, Tina asks, “Of what?”

“That I’ll spend every single day of this year loving you…”

“Awww!” Tina exclaims really touched. “I will too!” She smiles.

“You promise?” Shane asks as he begins to lean in closer to his girlfriend.

“Always…” Tina replies meeting Shane halfway and  kissing him on the lips.

—–

Quinn takes a seat at a table and pulls her boyfriend to sit with her. Puck smiles and instead of taking a seat at one of the empty chairs, he decides to sit on his girlfriend’s lap.

“Get down you dork! You’re heavy!” Quinn complains playfully, but the military man just laughs and starts kissing her neck.

“Fine don’t move then!” Quinn says trying to sound mad, but failing as a small giggle escapes from her lips.

“I love you Quinn. Even when you’re all grumpy and call me fat.” Puck says still kissing her girlfriend’s neck.

“I didn’t call you fat!” She immediately replies.

“Yes, you did, you said I was heavy…”

“Because you are, but that doesn’t mean you’re fat…” She explains. “And I love you too, even when you crush my legs and don’t call me for months!”

Puck’s expression changes and looking into Quinn’s green eyes, he says, “But you do know I’m always thinking about you, don’t you?”

“Always?” Quinn asks, although she already knows the answer.

“Always…” Puck replies leaning over and kissing Quinn.

—–

Sam takes another bite of his food and smiles at Mercedes who is just watching him eat for the 10th time in the night.

“Are you ever going to stop eating?” She asks out of curiosity with a chuckle.

“I’m hungry!” Sam exclaims in self defense.

“I know, but you’re always hungry!” She says trying not to laugh at her boyfriend’s antics.

“Yeah, it’s kind of my thing!” He says smiling and finally putting the plate down. “But…” he adds seductively. “I could trade food for kisses every time…”

“Really?” The soul diva replies flirtatiously.

“Yes…” Sam says leaning over and kissing Mercedes. “Always…”

—–

Santana and Brittany slip through the doorway of Brittany’s office. They close the door, trying to hide from their friends. Santana takes a seat in Brittany’s leather desk chair as the blonde takes a seat on Santana’s lap and the Latina rubs her wife’s upper arms.

“So what happens now?” Santana suddenly asks, breaking the silence while snaking her arms around Brittany’s waist.

“I don’t know, we could hide out here and share some more intimate sweet lady kisses.” Brittany suggests.

Santana laughs a little. “That’s not what I was talking about, though I like that idea…” She says seriously contemplating turning that lock on Brittany’s office door. But knowing it was probably better to wait until they were home, the Latina shakes her head and kissing the back of her wife’s shoulder she says, “I was just wondering what’s next for us in this new year?”

Brittany shrugs. “I don’t know, but I’ll be with you the whole time…” The blonde smiles widely, the love in her eyes showing how completely sure of her answer she was.

“You promise?”

Brittany nods and kissing her wife she whispers against her lips, “Always…”

—–

Kurt and Blaine are hugging each other and looking at the L.A night skyline at one of P.L.A.D’s balconies. The air of the cold night is making them shiver a little, but they are way too comfortable to even move a little.

“2016 husband! We actually made it! Another year together!” Blaine exclaims.

“Another year of many…” Kurt whispers.

“What do you think that lays ahead for us in this new year?” Blaine asks looking into Kurt’s blue eyes.

“I don’t know…” Kurt shrugs caressing his husband’s face. “The future is a mystery, but what I do know with certainty is that this is going to be a year full of love, better said, this is going to be a life full of love…husband.”

Blaine smiles warmly. He loves to hear the word _‘husband’_ coming from Kurt’s lips. It makes the whole thing more real. “I love you…”

“I love you too…”

The two boys remain silent for some minutes until Blaine speaks up again. “We will have ups and downs, but always together…right?”

Kurt smiles softly and kisses his husband. “Always…”

—–

 Wesley and Rachel are the only ones still slow dancing with the sweet notes of What Am I to You by Norah Jones. Rachel has her head resting on Wesley’s chest while the blue-eyed actor is rubbing her back. They are moving in perfect synchrony  until Wesley asks, “Are you happy?”

Rachel simply nods smiling, she’s not in her talkative self.

“What are your wishes for this year?” Wesley asks, wanting to know what’s going on Rachel’s head.

Rachel raises her head a little and smiles at Wes. “Love, health, happiness and you…”

Wesley smiles broadly. “Well, I can promise you love, tons of love. I can’t promise you health, but I can promise to take care of you when you’re sick. I can promise you happiness and most importantly I can promise you that I’ll be there by your side…”

Rachel smiles and asks, “Always?”

Wes nods and kissing the brunette he whispers. “Always…”

The New Year’s party was a hit and the ending was bittersweet to everyone involved. They were excited for the new year and next step in their lives, but it also meant saying goodbye to their friends and returning home.

Wesley’s SUV leads the way to LAX airport with Rachel, Santana and Brittany following right behind him, in their respective cars. They all offered to drive their friend to the airport in hopes of prolonging their goodbyes just a little longer.

After finding a parking spot close enough together in the short term parking area, everyone exited the cars and grabbed their bags before entering the airport. Despite being excited for their new adventure, everyone is wearing long faces at the thought of saying goodbye. They knew that they were growing up and making commitments and their careers were getting busier and sometimes life just happens and gets in they way, so no one was a hundred percent sure when the gang would be able to get together again.

Due to the L.A. traffic they end up getting to the airport a little later than planned causing Quinn, Puck, Tina and Shane to cut it close as they gave quick hugs and yelled out their goodbyes as they ran towards security.

The rest of the gang stand there quietly as they watch the four of them go through security. Waving to them before they disappeared down a hallway and headed towards their terminal to catch their flight to Cabo for their mini vacation they were planning before both women had to say goodbye to their men as they were being shipped back overseas for three months.

Letting out a sigh, Rachel fixes the ends of her hair, trying to pretend she wasn’t bothered by the rushed goodbye. She looks to her right where Mercedes and Sam stand with tickets in one hand and luggage in their other. “What time does your flight leave?” The small brunette asks in a sad whisper.

“We still have about a half hour but we should probably go ahead and head towards security so we don’t have to run through this airport like our heads are cut off as we search for our terminal, like those four just did.” Mercedes answers with a chuckle. She steps up and wraps her arms around Rachel pulling her into a hug. “Oh come on don’t get all emotional, that’s Santana’s job.” She jokes sending a wink in the Latina’s direction and ignoring the playful eye roll she got in response. Turning her attention back to Rachel she pulls back from the hug and says, “I know between filming your show and my tour over on the other side of the world is going to make things harder for us to meet up but let’s try not to become strangers, okay?”

Rachel nods her head as she presses her lips together trying to fight back the tears. Quickly stepping back up she hugs Mercedes one last time before switching to hug Sam. Reluctantly, Rachel takes a step back from the couple, letting the others say their goodbyes as well before the two disappear into the flow of other passengers.

“Yeah, we should probably be heading towards our flight too. We’re actually headed to Washington to visit some of Naomi’s family.” Mike gives his hugs as Naomi does the same with the girls and nods her head politely to the men.

Mike wraps his arm around his girlfriend’s hip while shifting their carry on bag on his shoulder. With one last smile and wave the two disappear into the crowded airport.

“Well, luckily we still have about two hours until our flight. Maybe we can find a seat and get to talk or something before we too have to say our sad goodbyes.” Artie says before pointing out an area of chairs off to the left where they all end up taking seats.

They easily slipped into conversations about their plans for the future and their busy schedules. They try to make plans to meet up again, but so far their schedules were conflicting. While Rachel was on a break from filming it was finals week for Artie and Madison. And while Brittany’s studio was holding dance recitals Kurt was going to be at some important events on Vogue; So far the way it was looking was that for the next few months they wouldn’t be able to see each other and unfortunately, or fortunately depending on how they looked at it, their careers and personal lives were only going to get busier from here.

The group discussion was interrupted by a voice coming over the intercom as they were deciding to just play it by ear and leave their next get together open. The voice announced that the plane for the flight back to New York has just arrived and would be boarding in the next fifteen minutes.

“Well, I guess that’s us.” Madison says, leaning into a group hug between Brittany and Santana. “We got to get Artie over there so we can make sure they don’t misplace his wheelchair this time.”

“She smiles when she says that, but it actually happened.” Artie points out with a smile of his own. They could laugh about it now but they sure did panic before.

Artie and Madison say their goodbyes to Rachel, Wesley, Brittany and Santana before looking to Kurt and Blaine waiting to see if they were going to follow them to the terminal.

Blaine looks over to his husband and sees Kurt looking towards the floor while wringing his wrist. Understanding that Kurt wasn’t ready for his goodbye just yet, Blaine tells Artie and Madison to go ahead and that they’d meet them there in a few minutes.

The remaining six friends stand in silence for a few minutes, just looking between each other, not wanting to be the one to say goodbye first. Feeling the heavy hearts of the group Blaine steps up knowing they would miss their flight if he just let them linger much longer. Blaine hugs Wesley first, patting him on the back and saying goodbye before moving on to Rachel. He shakes his head at Rachel’s fill with tears eyes and pulls her into a tight hug. “I love you Rachel, we will figure something out to see each other again I’m sure.” Blaine pinches her chin playfully before kissing her cheek and moving on to Brittany.

They both smile at each other and hug as Brittany whispers her _‘We’ll miss you.’_ speaking for her and Santana both. Blaine steps out of Brittany’s embrace and despite Santana’s _‘Don’t you dare.’_ look she is sending him, Blaine pulls her too into a hug. At first contact Santana tenses, trying not to show her emotions and pretending to be uncomfortable with the contact, but after a few short seconds she wraps her arms around Blaine and whispers that she’ll miss him too.

Kurt takes a deep breath and hugs Brittany, Santana and Wesley before ending standing in front of Rachel. They just look at each other for a couple of seconds sharing with their eyes what they are not able to say out loud.

Rachel swallows thickly before she takes a step forward and gives Kurt a bone crushing hug; whispering into his ear. “Don’t worry, okay, Kurt? We’ll see each other again, someday…” She trails off, trying to believe her own words.

Kurt nods and trying to keep his emotions at bay, takes a deep breath. He drops his hands from around Rachel and reaches out to take his husband’s. His anchor.

The two men give their small waves as they pick up their carry on bags and head towards their terminal.

Before they disappear they hear Brittany and Wesley yell out, “Have a nice flight!” Turning their heads at the two voices Blaine laughs and Kurt smiles and waves with his free hand before they turn the corner heading towards their flight back home.

Brittany leans her head on Santana’s shoulder as Santana laces an arm around her wife’s waist, creating soothing patterns to ease the blonde’s mind as they stand there staring in the distance where most of their friends have disappeared.

  
Wesley looks down to see tears clouding Rachel’s eyes. He leans down and kisses the top of her head, whispering _‘I love you.’_ Rachel smiles up at him and repeats the words back before blinking and a lone rebel tear escapes and runs down her cheek. _‘Goodbye…’_ She whispers to herself as they turn around and walk back home.


	13. Farewell

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Previously on the Glee Fan Project…The whole gang got together for the Holidays in the sunny L.A. After months of just happiness the relationship between Rachel and Wesley started to change when Rachel began to pick fights with Wesley out of nowhere. Uh-oh! Rachel insecurities and the constant presence of Chloe got the worst out of her and things turned bad…Yikes! After the big fight Wesley seeked advice from his best friend Brittany while Rachel relied on the one person who always understood her, Finn Hudson…R.I.P. Finn! Anyways, after the drama and some please-forgive-me songs, they all enjoyed a crowded Christmas dinner in the Pierce-Lopez household. Yay! Some days after, the That’s Oh So Rachel show screening happened and Rachel, Wesley, Santana and Brittany walked the red carpet together…Say cheese! *flash* The rest of the group was also there and together they had a wonderful time…Did we tell you that Rachel show is actually really good? Anyways, since they all were there, the group of friends decided to also spend New year’s together and guess what? They all kissed at midnight!...and that’s what you missed on Glee.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s our final episode! We have so many emotions going on right now that we’re not even sure of what to say, but thank you! Thank you so much for reading and sticking with us! We really appreciate it! And we love you all! Though this is our last official episode, we are not over yet, we still have a lot of things hold in store for you so keep an eye on our blog for more information. Anyways, let’s go down to this episode. As many of you already know, this episode is set 10 years in the future. We decided to do it this way to give you all a glimpse into our beloved characters future lives. We really hope you like it! There are some kids, some drama and obviously lots and lots of music. We even gave each couple their last duet together. So, as usual at the top you'll find the link to the intro video and the Episode 13 playlist of songs, in case we have included a song that you may not have heard of. Remember that we wrote the characters singing these songs with their own vocal arrangements in mind that’s why some of these songs are covers and some are the originals. We hope you enjoy them!

[Episode 13 playlist](https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLv_rvGfxbXKMSjUjp9uLgJYRO9fnvjICT)

 

**…10 years later**

 

The sun sets high in the sky and not a cloud is to be seen in Lima, Ohio. The curtains on a cracked window in the kitchen at the Pierce’s house sway along with the breeze. Santana sits on a bar stool watching Susan Pierce busy herself with the dishes as the two get lost in conversation and wait for Brittany and her father to come downstairs. Chancing a glance at the stove tops digital clock Santana sets down her now empty mug of coffee and she says, “We’re going to be late.”

Drying her hands off on a dish towel Brittany’s mom scrunches her eyebrows while looking towards the staircase. “Yeah, I’m not sure what is taking Stephen and Brittany so long?”

Santana opens her mouth to respond but it is quickly cut off. “Mamí!” She hears the cry echo through the room causing her to jump up from the bar stool. She excuses herself before quickly walking up the steps making her way to Brittany’s old bedroom.

Pushing the door open Santana see her wife holding their small two year old son, trying to keep him from squirming out of her lap as she pulls his pants over his pull up. His dark brown eyes were full of unshed tears as he hiccups and rubs his eyes with clenched fists.

“What happened?” Santana asks, running her fingers through her long hair as she squats down next to Brittany on the floor.

After successfully dressing her son Brittany helps the little boy to stand up as she answers her wife. “He was sleeping and I had to wake him up to get him dressed. So, he’s not very happy with me right now and now he only wants you.” Brittany runs her fingers through their son’s curly dark hair and laughs as he shakes his head and reaches his arms out toward Santana while wailing for his _‘Mami’._

Santana smiles at her son’s tired eyes and quickly grants him his wish by picking him up and cradling him in her arms with his head resting on her chest. “Aiden bebé, shhh.” Santana cooed as she rocks the two year old in her arms trying to comfort him. Looking up to her wife, who is looking back at the two with such adoration, she asks, “Where’s your dad and the girls?”

Standing up and stretching before bending down and picking up the clothes she just took off Aiden, Brittany answers, “He was in the guest bedroom helping the twins get dressed while I came in here to wake up Aiden.”

Nodding in understanding Santana looks back down to the small boy clutching to the neckline of her shirt and still letting out small whimpers. The Latina places a small kiss to her son’s forehead smiling as he buries his face into the crook of her neck. Santana looks up when she hears Brittany’s voice.

“I’m going to make sure the girls are ready.” The blonde goes to walk out wearing a sad pout at her son’s rejection. She takes a step away from her wife and son, but is stopped when she feels her shirt caught on something. Looking back over her shoulder she sees Aiden’s tiny fist holding on the her sleeve, not wanting his ‘ _Momma’_ to leave either.

Brittany smiles softly at her son before wrapping her arms around Santana so Aiden was cuddled between both of his mothers. The blonde rubs the little boys back softly before moving her hand to wipe away a tear from Aiden’s cheek.

Aiden stares back at Brittany with big watery tired eyes and his little hand still holding onto the fabric of Brittany’s shirt and his head rested on Santana’s shoulder. Santana bends her head down to look at her baby boy’s big beautiful brown eyes, causing him to shift his gaze up to her. “Do you remember what you get to do today, Mijo?”

The two year old shakes his head against his _‘Mami_ ’s’ shoulder before Brittany takes over saying, “You get to go to Kings Island with Bisabuela.”

At the mention of the theme park Aiden lifts his head and his eyes widen, tears now long forgotten. Brittany lets out a chuckle, kissing him on his temple. “There’s that smile I love.” The blonde kisses Aiden’s cheek smiling at the way his eyes flutter tiredly before moving her lips up to kiss her wife’s lips and giving her a wink. “I’m going to make sure the girls are ready, you know my dad. Can you finish getting him dressed? I know we gotta get going.”

Smiling, Santana nods and watches as Brittany slips out the bedroom door before sitting Aiden on the bed and putting on his socks and shoes.

Pushing open the guest bedroom, which her parents turned into the kids room almost six years ago, Brittany steps inside and is immediately engulfed with a chorus of screams and giggles. Lifting her hand to her mouth, Brittany can’t help but laugh at the scene before her. Her father, Stephen, is on all fours pretending to be a horse while their twin girls sit on his back laughing. Brittany waves her hand to get the girls attention. When they both look up Brittany speaks, “Are you ready?” Both girls nod their heads and jump off their grandpa’s back. “Say goodbye to grandpa Mami’s waiting, we got to get going.” Brittany speaks as she uses sign language as well.

The two five year old girls turn and give Brittany’s dad a hug and a kiss on the cheek before running out the room together. Brittany thanks her dad for his help before meeting the Pierce-Lopez clan at the bottom of the steps.

After saying goodbye to Brittany’s parents Santana and Brittany load their three kids into their car seats and checks their seat belts for safety. Santana opens the passenger door for Brittany and waits as she slips into her seat before giving her a quick kiss and closing her door to make her way to the drivers seat. Putting the Rang Rover into reverse and pulling out of the driveway they drive the four blocks over to Alma Lopez’s house.

Santana pulls the SUV into her abuela’s driveway before shifting the car into park and unbuckling her seat belt to slide out of the car. While Brittany opens up the back door and helps Aiden out of his car seat, Santana does the same, unbuckling the twins from their booster seats and helping them jump out. With Aiden on Brittany’s hip and a twin clutched to each of Santana’s hands they walk up the driveway and to the front door. Brittany uses her free hand to knock on the door.

As soon as the front door opens the twins try to make a break for it and run inside; but Santana quickly grabs their hands back and when they both turn to look at her she says while using sign language as well, “Not so fast. Sophia, Amelia, give momma and I a hug goodbye.”

Sophia wraps her arms around Brittany’s legs before doing the same to Santana and running off into the house yelling, “Bye Momma, bye Mamí.”

Shaking her head at her daughter’s enthusiasm Santana bends down and wraps her arms around Amelia’s waist, kissing the little girl all over her face causing her to giggle. She pulls back to look at her daughter before bringing her hands up and signing, _‘You excited for today?’_

Nodding with a wide smile, Amelia signs a quick, _‘Yes!’_

 _‘Good.’_ Santana signs with a smile, _‘Give Momma and I a hug. Then you can go join your sister inside.’_

Amelia quickly gives both of her mothers a hug and waves goodbye as she runs into the house.

Brittany slides Aiden off her hip and helps him stand up. He immediately hooks his small arms around Brittany’s legs and hides his face. Santana smiles at his shyness, knowing that after about ten minutes he will be running around like he is on a sugar rush. Bending down his Latina mother asks, “Are you ready to have lots and lots of fun today with Bisabuela?”

He nods but tightens his grip around Brittany’s leg causing the blonde to chuckle. Brittany squats done as well. Kissing Aiden’s cheek Brittany whispers, “You know….If you give Bisabuela a big hug, she might let you have some ice cream at King’s Island today.”

Aiden’s eyes widen at the mention of getting ice cream. Looking from his _‘Momma’_ to his _‘Mamí’_ , who sends him a quick wink; the barely two year old lets go of Brittany’s leg and runs over to his bisabuela, stopping in front of her and reaching his arms out at her.

Alma laughs before bending down to pick the small boy up, smiling at the way he hugs her tightly. “Hola nieto, no te preocupes nos divertiremos. And Abuela is going to come too!” (Translation: Hello grandson, don’t worry we will have fun.)

“Did you hear that? Abuela is coming to!” Santana looks towards Aiden, loving the way his eyes light up at the mention of her mother.

After saying their final goodbye’s to their kids and thanking Abuela Alma over and over for watching them, Brittany and Santana make their way to the car. Once seated inside the vehicle Brittany speaks up, “Did you see the way the girls just tried to run off like that. Not even caring that we were leaving. God, I remember when they would throw fits just when we would leave them for a few hours….” She trails off, looking up to her wife with shy tears welled up in her eyes. “They are growing up so much San.”

Santana rests her hand on top of Brittany’s, giving it a light squeeze while swallowing the lump in the back of her throat at the thought of their baby girls not needing them so much anymore. “I know Britt-Britt. I’m not ready for our baby twin girls to grow up either.” She brings their clasped hands up and kisses the back of Brittany’s hand before resting them back on the arm rest, still not letting go. She shifts the SUV into reverse and heads down the road.

** **

Kurt looks at himself in the mirror and can’t help but frown when he notices the small and almost invisible wrinkles that he knows are starting to take shape in the corner of his eyes. They are not big, but without a doubt they are signs that he’s getting old. Not the nursing kind of old, Kurt knows he’s still young, but he’s not the same young kid who once wore a tight black leotard to dance along Beyonce’s _Single Ladies_. He’s now a successful 32 year old family man who is proud of the things he’s done.

He’s putting on his light grey Armani suit when the door of his old room suddenly swings open and his husband pokes through it wearing his peculiar charming smile.

“Hi there handsome!” Kurt exclaims smiling at the hazel-eyed man.

“Hi there handsome yourself!” Blaine replies back walking inside the small room.

“And the kids?” Kurt asks, noticing that the house is particularly silent in the upper part and that his husband entered the room alone.

“Downstairs…Playing with your dad.” Blaine replies taking a seat at the edge of the bed.

“We’re getting old…” Kurt suddenly says while lacing his tie around his neck.

Blaine doesn’t reply and just stands up and walks the small distance between the bed and the vanity to stand right behind his husband. “May I?” He asks, grabbing the tie.

Kurt nods smiling and whispers a soft _‘Thank you’_ while he looks at the reflection of them in the mirror, waiting for his husband to finish help him with his tie.

“And yes…We’re getting older, but we’re still young…” Blaine says as he finishes with Kurt’s tie.

Kurt turns around and smiles broadly to his husband. “How do I look?”

“As handsome and sophisticated as ever!” Blaine replies leaning over and giving Kurt a quick peck on the lips.

“You look handsome too, you always do.” Kurt simply replies trying to straighten his husband’s suit and removing the invisible dust from his shoulders.

“Are you ready?” Blaine asks.

“I am…And you?”

“I am.” Blaine replies leaning over again and giving his husband another quick peck on the lips.

“Then let’s go!” Kurt exclaims excited and grabs his husband’s hand as they both walk down the stairs and into the living room where they can hear their three little kids giggling and having a good time with their grandpa.

As soon as they pass through the threshold of the living room door, they freeze in their places. The image displayed in front of them is too sweet and lovely, and Blaine immediately takes out his phone to take some pictures.

Burt has their 3 year old triplets in a line as he gives them what Kurt knows his dad calls a _‘rocket ship ride’_ , a.k.a he just lifts them really high in the air and makes them giggle.

“They are so sweet…” Blaine whispers so only Kurt can hear him.

Kurt just nods and smiles warmly at his beautiful family. He can’t help but remember when his dad used to do that to him when he was a little kid and although he didn’t enjoy it quite as much as his kids seem to be enjoying, he remembers it was still fun.

Kurt and Blaine stand there watching for a few minutes with huge smiles on their faces while their three little kids are having so much fun with grandpa Burt. They don’t want to interrupt and kill the fun, but time is ticking and they both know they must be going or else they are going to be late, and Kurt hates to be late.

“Hey guys!” Kurt exclaims clapping his hands to get the attention of the kids and his dad. “Daddy and I are leaving now, so come on and give us a big hug!”

Burt stops the rides and Lila, the most restless of the three, quickly runs over to give her dads a quick hug so she can go back to play again.

Blaine kisses his little girl and picks her up. “Be good princess.” He warns her, knowing too well that this little one can be a serious headache when she doesn’t behave.

Lila just nods and Kurt leans over and whispers into his husband’s ear. “Her name is Lila, not princess.” Blaine chuckles and puts Lila on Kurt’s arms.

Kurt kisses his little girl and Lila jumps to the ground and runs over to where his grandfather is standing to keep playing while her brother and sister say goodbye to their dads.

Carter, the little boy, walks right to where Kurt is and raises his little arms so that his _‘papa’_ can carry him. Kurt smiles warmly at that little mess of curls and picks him up. Carter immediately rest his head on Kurt’s shoulder and hugs him tightly.

Kurt smiles warmly and whispers into Carter’s ear, “Take care of your sisters, okay buddy?”

Carter nods and as Blaine grabs the boy from his husband’s arms, he mutters, “Carter, his name is Carter.” Clearly following the little game his husband started when he called Lila princess.

Kurt turns around and gives his husband a killing, but playful look. A while ago, they had decided to use pet names for their kids, but only in special occasions, however, they both loved to call their kids all kinds of pet names every time.

By the time Blaine puts Carter in the floor, Elizabeth, the last one of the trio and certainly the more attached to them, is standing there with her eyes already welled up. With just one look towards those honey eyes, both Kurt and Blaine can tell that she is not going to be easy.

“Come here Lizzy…” Blaine whispers, and Kurt keeping up with the little game between them whispers. “Elizabeth Blaine, her name is Elizabeth!”

Blaine just rolls her eyes playfully as he picks up Elizabeth and the girl immediately latches into his daddy’s arms.

“Daddy don’t leave!” Elizabeth cries out as tears start to roll down her little pink cheeks.

“Don’t cry Lizzy, you know we have to go. We’re just leaving for a little while, we will be back soon. I promise!” Blaine says trying to calm down his little daughter.

Kurt takes a deep breath and tries to smile reassuringly to his daughter. It kills him when she cries like that. “Don’t cry sweetheart, you heard daddy, we will be back real soon…”

“Don’t go papa!” She cries again squeezing Kurt’s hand tightly and grabbing onto Blaine’s neck while she cries inconsolably.

“You know we have to go, but I promise you that as soon as we’re back, we will watch your favorite movie…How does that sound?” Kurt asks as he wipes the tears that keep rolling down her little face.

“Don’t go!” She pleads again. Apparently she’s not letting this go easily.

“And we can eat ice cream…Do you want that?” Blaine adds, trying to help.

Elizabeth nods but keeps crying hiding her face in Blaine’s shoulders.

Eventually, and noticing that this is going nowhere, Carole comes out of the kitchen and into the living room, forcibly taking Elizabeth from Blaine’s arms.

Elizabeth cries louder and reaches out for her dads. Kurt tries to grab her but Carole shakes her head. “Don’t, it only be worse. Kids cry, she’ll get over. Just go before you’re late.” She says walking to the kitchen carrying Lizzy who’s screaming and crying.

Kurt and Blaine look at each other and take a deep breath at the same time. Carole is right, they have to go and if they stay trying to calm down Elizabeth, they are going to be late.

“Let’s go…” They murmur at the same time.

With one last wave to Carter and Lila who are now jumping on one of the couches while Burt grabs them, Kurt and Blaine start to walk to the door. Burt immediately puts the kids down and calling Carole, so that she can take care of them, he follows his sons to the door.

“Hey! Guys! Wait.” He exclaims, causing Kurt and Blaine to turn around before opening the door.

“What is it dad?” Kurt asks, quickly glancing to his clock and clenching at Elizabeth’s still desperate cries.

“Umm, Nicholas called…” Burt says as a matter of explanation. “He and Pamela will be here soon, so I wanted to ask you both if it was okay that we take the kids out for a while? Just to the park and maybe for some ice cream, we will take care of them I promise…”

Blaine and Kurt smile warmly at the man in front of them. “You don’t have to ask us permission Burt…” Blaine says.

“Yes, dad! We trust you, you can take the kids wherever you want, it’s okay.” Kurt reassures his father.

“Okay, I just wanted to let you know…Have a great reunion kids!” Burt exclaims excited.

“Thanks dad, take good care of them!” Kurt says and in that moment Elizabeth, who could still hear her dads’ voices, screams louder.

Blaine and Kurt look at each other again and before they can say anything else, Burt says. “Just go, she’ll be fine! Go!”

Kurt and Blaine nod and take a deep breath, hesitantly leaving and heading to their parked dark grey SUV. Even from outside the house, they can still hear Elizabeth’s desperate screams.

“It breaks my heart every time she does that….” Blaine says looking back to the now closed door.

Kurt grabs his husband’s hand. “Mine too honey, you don’t know how much, but we’re already late.”

“Yeah I know, but still…” Blaine trails off.

Kurt smiles reassuringly at his husband. “Don’t worry, you heard my dad, your dad is coming and you know our girl…As soon as she sees her grandpa Nick she’ll smile again…”

Blaine just smiles, it was true. Elizabeth was as attached to Nicholas as she was with them. They didn’t know why, but little Lizzy loved Nicholas Anderson way too much.

They slide into the car and Blaine turns the key. While the engine roars to life, Kurt turns the radio on and quickly gives his husband a kiss on the cheek.

Blaine just smiles warmly while he pushes the pedal to the ground and the car starts to move forward. Next stop, William Mckinley High School.

Rachel walks out of her old bathroom and walks near the bed where her husband is laying down reading some old magazine.

“A little help?” Rachel says turning around and pointing to the unzipped dress.

Wesley nods and stands up to quickly help his wife with her beautiful dress. “You look amazing my love…” He whispers into Rachel’s ear leaving a soft kiss in one of her shoulders.

“Thank you baby, you look amazing too…” Rachel replies, winking at her husband and walking away to get her shoes and touch up her makeup.

Rachel is applying some last touches of color down her cheeks when Wesley starts to laugh. Worried, Rachel looks at herself in the mirror. Maybe she added a lot of makeup and that’s why her husband is laughing, but as soon as she sees her reflection in the mirror, she frowns confused. Her makeup is perfect, _then why is he laughing?_

“May I ask, what’s so funny?” The brunette asks.

Wesley just smiles and points into his ear, letting his wife know that she has to listen more carefully.

Rachel frowns again but pays attention and it is then when she listens to her dads and daughter singing and playing the piano.

“Did they do the same with you when you were a kid?” Wesley asks, out of curiosity.

“Rachel nods and smiles. “Every time…”

“Well, at least our Ellie sings just like you.” Wesley says proud of his little daughter’s amazing talent.

“She inherited both our amazing voices baby, that’s why she’s great.” Rachel says while finishing up her makeup.

After 10 more minutes, Wesley and Rachel are ready to go. Wesley grabs his and Rachel’s coats and helps his wife walk down the stairs. As soon as they are in the living room, Wesley notices Ian, their youngest son, playing with his Lego blocks and constructing what looks like a castle.

The little guy notices his parents and immediately throws his blocks away and climbs into his daddy’s back, messing his hair along the way.

“Ian, sweetheart, you’re messing with your dad’s hair and he heeds to look handsome for our reunion.” Rachel says, looking at the mess her son did with his dad’s hair.

Ellie, who had stopped singing and was paying attention to the little conversation, rolls her eyes dramatically, just like her mother does every time, and walks closer to fix her dad’s hair. “Don’t worry mom, I’ll make him look handsome again…” She says while brushing her small fingers against her dad’s hair and fixing it.

As soon as she thinks his dad’s hair is perfect she takes a step back to admire her work. “Better.” She says sure of herself, and smiling she returns to the piano where her granddads are waiting for her.

“Are you guys ready to go?” LeRoy asks looking at the couple.

“Yes sir, we just need to call a cab or something.” Wesley replies. They didn’t rent a car when they arrived so now the transportation was a problem.

“Nonsense!” Hiram exclaims. “Take our car, we won’t go out today right kids? We have different plans!” He says smiling playfully with the kids.

“Should I worry about that?” Rachel asks, knowing too well that her dads _‘different plans’_ could involve all kinds of risky activities.

“Not at all my dear!” LeRoy reassures his daughter. “We will just watch some movies and eat junk food…”

Rachel rolls her eyes but smiles at her dads. She doesn’t allow her kids to have a lot of junk food because she’s a responsible parent, but she’s not doing it, her dads are doing it so it’s fine to have a little fun once in a while.

“We have to go…” Wesley whispers.

“Yeah, okay…Well have fun with your granddads babies…We’ll see you at night okay?” Rachel says quickly kissing Ian’s temple and walking to hug Ellie.

“Mom…” Ellie says once she’s free from her mother’s embrace. “Before you go, would you like to hear me sing? I want to show you the new song my grandpas taught me!” She exclaims excited.

Wesley clears his throat, surely about to say that they already heard the song, but Rachel quickly turns her head and gives her husband her very special _‘Don’t you dare to open your mouth Grey!’_ eyes and returns her attention to her daughter. “We would love to hear that baby!” She says encouraging her daughter to show her talent.

Ellie, who is a mini replica of one Rachel Berry, clears her throat and giving her grandpas a quick nod, starting to sing a long while LeRoy plays the piano for her.

Rachel smiles while the little girl gives a whole performance that includes a very unrehearsed and recently learned dramatic choreography.

Ian, who’s still on his dad’s shoulders, whispers into his ear. “Why does she always has to sing?” The 4 year old kid asks genuinely curious.

“Because she likes it.” Wesley replies smiling at his little son.

“Like mom?” Ian asks.

“Like mom…” Wesley replies, looking at his two women.

“But she dances like you…” Ian points out.

“You think?”

“Yep…” Ian simply says.

Wesley smiles proudly. Even Ian, in his innocence could see the resemblance between them and their 6 year old daughter. There was no doubt that Ellie Grey was the daughter of Rachel and Wesley Grey.

When Ellie finishes her performance Wesley, Ian, Rachel and Hiram clap excited and Ellie starts to bow.

The Grey’s say their goodbyes again and head to the door, grabbing the Berry’s car keys along the way. “Do you have my coat?” Rachel asks.

Wesley nods and raises a little the black coat he has been carrying. Rachel smiles and steps out of the house with her husband following right behind her.

“I think our little Ellie is very talented. I think we have another golden star in this family…” He proudly says while opening the passenger door and helping his wife to get in.

Rachel takes a sit and with a big proudly mama smile she says, “Of course she is! She was born to be a star! Just like her parents!”

Wesley laughs a little and closes the door. “Just like her parents…”

A blonde man is looking intently at the phone he’s holding in his hands. He just received a new text message and Blaine’s name on the screen. Quickly sliding his finger across the screen, Sam reads the message. _“We’re on our way! Are you guys there already?”_

 _“Not yet! Cedes is still getting ready!”_ Sam texts back, adding a playful emoji at the end of the message.

His phone buzzes again. _“Hurry up! We’ll meet you there!”_

 _“Okay…”_ Sam replies back, putting his phone on his pocket again and walking to the bathroom door. “Honey!” Sam knocks softly.

“Yeah?” Mercedes yells back, somewhere behind the bathroom’s closed door. “What is it?”

“Blaine just texted me…Ummm, they are on their way, are you almost ready?” Sam carefully asks, knowing that his wife gets mad whenever he rushes her to get ready. _‘Beauty takes time’_ Is what Mercedes usually replies.

“Yeah…10 more minutes.” Mercedes says and Sam just sighs.

10 minutes in Mercedes’ clock were like 20 minutes in real time. “Honey, we’re kind of late, do you think you can make it in 5?” He asks again.

Mercedes doesn’t reply and just opens the bathroom door. She’s wearing a beautiful pink dress, and almost all her makeup is already finished. “Sam, babe…I know you want to see everyone, but a successful Grammy Award winner can’t go to the school reunion looking like another thirty something. I need to be perfect so give me just 10 minutes and I’ll be ready…”

“But you already look perfect.” Sam says, smiling a crooked smile, taking a minute to appreciate his wife’s natural beauty. “You’re always perfect.”

“Thank you sweetie, but you just say that because you’re my husband and you love me, but the press won’t say the same if they know that last year’s album of the year Grammy winner went to her alumni reunion dressed like a nobody. Beauty–” She’s saying but Sam interrupts her.

“–Takes time…” He completes the sentence his wife have been using in all these 8 years of marriage. “I know honey, then take your time. I’ll text Blaine and ask him to save us some places at their table. I don’t know who’s attending and I rather be seated next to familiar faces…” Sam says.

“Okay, sounds good, now go and make some company to my dad while I’m ready. It won’t take long I promise!” She says, quickly leaning over and giving his husband a quick peck on the lips.

Sam takes advantage of the position and grabs Mercedes from the waist and intensifies the kiss. “I love you.” He whispers between kisses.

“And I love you too…Now go before I have the urge to rip that sexy suit from you!” She says smirking at her man.

Sam just laughs and walks away while Mercedes closes the door again. Sam takes a deep breath and pulls out his phone to quickly text his friend.

 _“We’re going to be late, make sure to save some places for us at your table.”_ He writes and hits send before walking out the room and heading to the living room where, David Jones was watching some game.

“Are you guys leaving?” The old man immediately asks when he notices his son in law entering the room.

“Not yet sir, Mercedes is not ready…” Sam says taking a seat in one of the couches.

“She’s just like her mother, they take way too long to get ready…” Mr. Jones says.

“What are you saying about me?” Linda Jones walks through the threshold joining the conversation.

“Nothing bad sweetheart, I was telling Sam that you and your daughter take way too much time to get ready, that’s all.” The old man says smiling all lovely to his wife.

“Well, that’s because bea–” She starts to say and both Mr. Jones and Sam interrupt her.

“Beauty takes time…” They both say at the same time.

Linda rolls her eyes playfully and the two men burst out laughing.

After almost 20 minutes, Mercedes walks down the stairs looking even more gorgeous than before. Sam immediately stands up and smiles at his wife. “Well, look at that! I thought you couldn’t get more perfect but you proved me wrong!” Sam says grabbing Mercedes’ hands in his own and giving her a quick kiss on the cheek.

“Thank you babe, you look perfect too!” She says lacing her fingers with her husband’s.

“Let me take you both a picture!” Mercedes mom exclaims excited.

“You already took one when we arrived!” Mercedes states.

“It doesn’t matter, I want another one, you both look amazing and one day I’ll show this to your kids and you’ll thank me for the pictures.” Mrs. Jones says already taking out her camera.

“Mom…” Mercedes says sounding not so thrilled by her mom’s obsession with family pictures.

“Shut up, gorgeous! And just smile!” She says pointing the camera to the happy couple.

Sam and Mercedes smile for a couple of minutes while the old lady takes thousands of pictures and finally lets them go.

“Okay mom, enough. We have to go…See you guys later!” Mercedes exclaims practically running to the door and pulling Sam with her.

“See you later David, Linda!” Sam quickly says while he’s been dragged out the door.

Once outside, the couple climb into their rental car and while they are buckling their seat-belts Mercedes asks, “Are you nervous or excited about going back to McKinley?”

“A little bit of both. I mean, when I came back her from New York and decided to become a teacher I thought that this town will always be my home, but then you and your amazing trust in me made me do great things and though I’ll always consider McKinley my favorite place in the world to teach, I can’t deny that I’m happy at Miami Senior High, my kids are great and I love them.” Sam says smiling just by the thought of his students.

“Awww, baby it wasn’t all me! You’re amazing and I’m so proud of all the things you’ve done who would have thought that you would become the head teacher of the Miami Senior High! I’m really so proud of you!”

“I love you!” Sam exclaims turning on the engine and bringing the car to life.

“I love you too, now let’s go and see our old friends! I seriously can’t wait!”

Brittany and Santana walk through the open door of to the gymnasium at William McKinley High School where the alumni gathering is being held. Looking around Santana feels an odd sense of familiarity; this place hasn’t changed much throughout the years. She still remembers all of their Cheerio’s practices and pep assemblies where the Glee Club would perform in that same gymnasium.

Letting out a sigh Santana says, “I so do not miss this place.”

Wrapping an arm around her wife’s lower back in comfort as well as ushering her into the room a little further, Brittany says, “I know high school was kind of rough, but I am looking forward to seeing everyone.”

Santana visibly relaxes at Brittany’s touch. Shrugging her shoulders slightly she agrees, “Yeah me too…Well except Gay-Berry, we still see her all the time… And it will be nice to see Quinn in person and not through our computer screen.”

Shaking her head at her wife’s antics Brittany informs, “Babe, you do know Rachel’s last name is now Grey, right?” She chuckles.

“Yeah I know. But Gay-Grey doesn’t sound as good.” Santana states simply.

Brittany just smiles at Santana’s cuteness and decides to let it go and as a second thought she says, “I can’t believe it’s been almost eight years since Sam and Mercedes got married and we all got together.”

Letting her eyes scan the room, Santana looks for any familiar faces from their old gang as she says, “I know, it’s crazy how much having babies, our growing careers, and just life gets in the way.”

Brittany just nods and they make their way towards the huge still half crowded tables.

When Kurt and Blaine arrived to the WMHS parking lot, the place was almost crowded. Blaine parks their car at the fair end of the place and they both climb down and stand outside the closed doors of their old High School.

“Ready?” Blaine asks, grabbing his husband’s hand.

Kurt just nods and the two men walk to the door, pushing it open and gasping at the same time. The old hallways look exactly as they remember them.

“Wow! Nothing has changed since we left this place…” Blaine whispers, looking around and recognizing the familiar lockers, doors, and hallways.

Kurt looks around too nodding. “Not in the slightest…” He says. “Oh wait! No! There are more Cheerios’ trophies I think.” He adds pointing to the overcrowded showcase.

Blaine follows his husband’s gaze and nods in agreement. There are definitely more Cheerios’ trophies.

The two men start to walk towards the gym getting anxious with every step they take. “Are you excited to see everyone again?” Blaine asks.

“Yeah, it’s been awhile since the last time we saw everyone. I’m curious to know what has happened with them in all these years!”

“Me too I think that–” Blaine is replying when Sue Sylvester, still wearing those weird red sport suits, walks out from one of the hallways and stumbles with them.

“Porcelain? Gay Clark Kent?” She asks looking at the now grown up couple.

“Nobody had called me like that in more than a decade.” Kurt confesses smiling. “Nice to see you again Coach Sue. I didn’t know you were still here.”

Sue just chuckles. “Well, Porcelain, someone had to stick around to make sure these kids’ lives were miserable!” She says smiling wickedly.

“Well, I’m sure you did an amazing job…” Blaine says.

“I did Porcelain’s husband, I did!” Sue says smiling proudly. “And don’t think I’m done with you two yet either. As long as you guys keep showing up -which seems like you always do eventually- it’s my job to make sure you leave again and never come back…” She says smiling and walking away to pick on another former WMHS student.

Kurt and Blaine look at each other and start to laugh. “Some things never change.” Blaine says between giggles.

Kurt nods, but looking around he notices a new pair of men walking through the door. He knows the face of one of them too well, that face tormented him for years and although he forgave him, there are things that you can’t completely forget. “Well I guess some things did change.” Kurt says. “Look over there…” he points out into the distance.

Blaine turns around to where Kurt pointed and sees Dave Karofsky walking hand in hand next to a tall handsome man. “Is that?”

“Yes, it seems he got his happy ending after all.” Kurt says genuinely happy for him.

Blaine takes a second to reply. He looks back and forth between his husband’s former bully and who they assumed must be his partner and can’t help but also feel happy for him. “You know? I’m glad he’s happy now, everybody deserves to be happy.” He says kissing his husband’s cheek.

“Like us!” Kurt exclaims resting his head on Blaine’s shoulder.

“Like us…” Blaine reassures him.

Kurt raises his head and kisses his husband’s lips giving him a quick wink before opening the doors of the gym.

They both look at each other and sighing a happy sigh they both enter the reunion.

Quinn and Puck walk through the McKinley entrance and make their way to the gym. It’s been years since they were there and it feels odd to be back to this place that holds back so many memories.

“I don’t know how I feel about this…” Quinn says looking around and taking in the familiar surroundings. “I thought I would be extremely excited to be back to this place, but I’m not. Don’t get me wrong, I’m excited just not as much as I thought I would be. I’m glad we’re back though, but this place doesn’t feel the same…” She tries to explain her thoughts.

“It’s because it’s not the same baby…” Puck replies. “We’re not part of this place anymore. A few years ago this was our home, now it’s not and it’s completely fine that you feel that way baby. It’s hard to be back to a place that meant so much for us and now it’s just an old memory…”

“At least it’s a good memory…I mean it’s where we met.” Quinn replies quickly kissing her husband.

Puck nods and opens the gym door to enter the reunion, but last thing he knows, his wife is being smothered in what looks like a bone crushing hug by a blonde woman. Puck tries to recognize the face, but he can’t really see her, just her hair.

“Quinn! Quinn!” The blonde woman squeals and that’s when Puck recognizes the voice. It’s Brittany.

“Hi Britt!” Quinn replies trying to catch her breath and release herself from the tightly and excited embrace.

Brittany steps back with a big smile on her face. “I’ve missed you Quinn. But wait!” The blonde exclaims as realization hits her. “How did you get out of our computer and come all the way here? I’m sure we left it in L.A.” She states frowning in confusion.

Quin simply laughs. “God! I’ve missed you Britt! I’m glad you’re still the same. Where’s Satan, I mean Santana.”

Brittany gives her a quick _‘Be nice to my wife look’_ and then points over to where she left her wife standing by the punch bowl. “She’s over there…Let’s go so you can say hi! By the way!” Brittany exclaims finally looking towards Puck. “You look nice in that suit Puck, it suits you!”

Puck just smiles warmly at his old friend and follows the girls toward the punch bowl.

Quinn and Puck are standing by the punch bowl filling up their cups with the fruity drink and talking with their long distance friends Brittany and Santana when they hear a voice coming from behind them.

“Wow! You two are still together? After all these years? I can’t believe my eyes! How have you managed to put up with thee Snix, Brittany?”

The four turn around to see who the voice came from and find Kurt standing next to Blaine smiling back at them.

Rolling her eyes Santana crosses her arms and says, “I’ve missed too Lady-Anderson-Hummel.”

Stepping up beside her wife Brittany laces her fingers with Santana’s, giving her had a light squeeze. “Yes Kurt. We are still together.” She turns her head to look at Santana as she continues, “Ten years of marriage and three kids later we are still very much in love and happy.” Brittany gives Santana a lingering kiss to the lips.

With wide eyes Blaine smiles as he asks, “You two have three kids? No way! So do we!” He exclaims excited.

“Oh my gosh! Picture’s guys, you have to show us pictures!” Kurt exclaims mirroring his husband’s excited expression.

Always accepting any chance to show off her beautiful children, Santana pulls her phone out from between her boobs and proudly shows off her ever growing album of pictures of Sophia, Amelia and Aiden.

“Oh my God they are so beautiful!” Kurt, Blaine, Quinn and Puck exclaim at the same time and Brittany and Santana smile proudly. They know their little kids are beautiful, but know they are curious to know how their friends kids look like. The girls have met Richard Puckerman, Puck and Quinn’s little baby, through the video calls but they haven’t met the Anderson-Hummel kids.

“Show us yours Kurt!” Brittany exclaims excited and encouraging Kurt and Blaine to show some pictures of their kids.

Kurt and Blaine immediately take out their phones and show off their endless amounts of pictures of Lila, Elizabeth and Carter, their 3 year old triplets. Proudly sharing some cute details and stories behind all their pictures.

The group starts to compliment their friends kids and Quinn, not wanting to miss the chance to gush about her’s, takes out her phone and starts to show some pictures of her little 4 year old son too.

As the group _‘Ohh’s’_ and _‘Aww’s’_ over all their children they are interrupted when Rachel makes her presence known by playfully punching Kurt in the arm. “Hey everyone!” She exclaims smiling and completely ignoring the shocked look coming from Kurt as he rubs his upper arm.

“What the hell Rachel!?” Kurt finally says.

Rolling her eyes Rachel scolds, “That’s for not keeping in touch Kurt! It’s been years! Years! You better not do that ever again! And you too Blaine!” She says pointing her finger towards Blaine.

“You know the phone works both ways, right?” Kurt questions.

Knowing he’s right, but choosing to ignore him and change the subject, Rachel says, “Anyways… What were you guys doing?”

At the thought of talking about his kids Kurt immediately forgets Rachel’s harshness and goes back to gushing about his kids with Blaine adding any small details Kurt might have been missing; things such as when Lila and Elizabeth said their first words, or when Carter got his first tooth and that time when they all dressed as the Incredible’s for Halloween.

The group starts to fall into a roar of discussion as Quinn and Rachel begin to show pictures of their kids too, bragging about them as well when Madison and Artie show up and easily fall into doing the same about their 1 year old son Andrew.

After some minutes, two more familiar faces join the conversation as Sam and Mercedes find their way over to the group as well.

“Look who’s finally entering the place!” Quinn exclaims excited. “The one and only, Grammy award winner Mrs. Mercedes Jones or Evans for that matter!”

“What’s up girl!” Mercedes says smiling warmly and quickly hugging each and everyone of her old high school friends.

Sam and Mercedes, besides Artie who practically disappeared for years, were the ones who less kept in touch during the years, they only talked to Kurt and Blaine because Mercedes and Blaine did a collaboration a few years ago, but other than them they haven’t talked to any of their old friends, so they were truly happy to see them all.

“We were showing pictures of our kids, do you have kids already?” Rachel asks, genuinely curious to meet Mercedes and Sam’s kids.

“We still don’t have children, but we’re trying. I mean, we decided to wait for a couple of years while our careers take off, but know we think is time, so expect the baby shower invitation for next year!” Mercedes exclaims excited.

“Then we can share with you guys some parenting tips, just so you are ready when your baby arrives!” Quinn says clapping her hands and easily falling into an endless conversation about how hard it is to have a baby, but how amazing the experience is.

The discussion soon comes to an end when Wesley speaks up, “Maybe we should find our table before it gets too crowded in here.

The group all agree and they maneuver through the filled gym of people and weaving through the tables and chairs till the find Mr. Schue, Emma and Tina who are already seated at the large table.

Everyone says their hello’s and takes a seat at the table. It isn’t until Blaine sits next to Tina that he realizes something very different about her since the last time they saw each other.

“Oh my god Tina! You’re pregnant! Congratulations!” He exclaims excited.

Tina smiles saying, “Thank you, Boo! I’ve missed you!”

“I’ve missed you too!” Blaine says quickly hugging his friend and rubbing her bulging stomach.

Kurt smiles warmly and quickly hugs Tina too. “It’s nice to see you Tina!” He exclaims.

“It’s nice to see you too Kurt, and you both look amazing!”

Kurt just smiles and takes a seat next to his husband.

The group starts to chat immediately, all of them sharing what they have been doing all these past years. Not too long after, Mike shows up at the table and after hugging everyone, sits down too. The group of old friends smile at each other because for the first time in eight years, they were all reunited again.

After a few minutes of catching up and refilling their drinks sitting in front of them, the group starts to share major events that happened in each of their lives throughout the years that have been estranged. Artie talks about how he and Madison, moved back to London a few years back and that they got married at a very small chapel two years ago.

“So you decided to get married at the other side of the world to avoid inviting us!” Tina exclaims.

“Of course not! Besides I’m not the only one who didn’t send invitations to their weddings…” He says looking intently at Rachel and Wesley.

“Don’t look at us like that!” Rachel says. “We didn’t have a ceremony like the rest of you okay? We just eloped…” She explains.

“Okay, okay, we forgive you Rachel…” Mercedes says, “But, Artie, why did you disappeared I mean, I saw you won a Golden Globe for your short film a few years ago, right? I tried to call you but I guess you don’t have your same phone number anymore…”

“Oh, I’m sorry Mercedes, but everything changed so quickly after that! I had to change all my numbers because the offers to write and direct movies were overwhelming. In fact that’s one of the reasons why we decided to move to London…”

“You didn’t accept the movies?” Puck asks genuinely curious.

“No, I haven’t done much in the public eye since then, now I just make indie films occasionally.” He exclaims, not really getting into a lot of detail.

Rachel, noticing that Artie is not going to elaborate on the subject, turns around and looks at Madison. “And you Madison? Are you still acting?”

Madison shakes her head, “No, I loved acting, but after Artie’s successful movie, I found a different passion…”

“What do you do now?” Wesley asks.

Madison smiles, “I set up an academy to support children with disabilities…”

“Really?” Santana asks, intrigued. “What kind of disabilities? What do you do there?”

“We help the kids to feel comfortable with themselves and we help them to integrate into society. We have professional people there helping them, it’s a wonderful place, I’m sure you guys would love to visit!”

Brittany and Santana share a quick look that goes unnoticed by everyone else, as Madison continues. “But tell me about you…What have you guys done?”

Rachel immediately smiles and speaks up, wanting to be the first one to share how successful she and her husband are. “You guys must be living under a rock if you haven’t heard about us! We’re like the ultimate _‘in’_ couple!” She exclaims excited while Santana just rolls her eyes. “Wesley is currently filming the show Men at Play as the lead character and I’m back on Broadway! I played Sally Bowles in Cabaret and I won a Tony as lead actress, now I’m at the Wicked revival playing the role of Elphaba, and–”

“Yeah, yeah Grey-Berry, you did great and so did your knight in shiny armor, but you’re not the only one. I did great too!” Santana interrupts, quickly wanting to share her success too. “I won an Oscar for my most recent movie!” She says excited. “I don’t know if you guys have seen it, it’s called At the Devils Door and–” She’s saying when Quinn and Kurt share a small giggle.

“What so funny?” The Latina asks.

“Nothing!” Quinn immediately says, “It’s just that the movie title suits you Satan, I mean Santana…”

“Ha! Ha! Very funny Mrs. Fabray, I mean Mrs. Puckerman. Like I was saying before these two interrupted me with their silly giggles, winning that Oscar was like a big deal for my career, now I’m receiving tons of new offers and I don’t know maybe I’ll decide to accept the role this Latin director, Gonzalez Iñarritu, is offering me. I mean he’s an Oscar award winner too and he’s good. So, well see!”

“Oh my God, Santana! Why didn’t you tell us! I would have loved to see you receiving your award!” Blaine says.

“Thanks Gel-Head, but don’t worry I’m sure I’ll receive many more so just keep an eye on the nominees and look for my name, Santana Lopez…”

“You mean, Pierce-Lopez, right?” Mike asks a bit confused as to why Santana used her maiden name.

“No, I decided to keep Santana Lopez as my stage name, to give the kids a bit of privacy. Outside work I’m Pierce-Lopez, but for work I’m just Santana Lopez. I think that works better…”

Mike just lets out a soft _‘Oh’_ in understanding and Brittany starts to share her story too. “I’m not  famous like my wife here, but I’m the owner of the most prestigious dance academy in all L.A.! After the success with the first P.L.A.D I decided to extend the business and now we have six academies distributed around L.A and we are planning to dwell further and open branches in other cities, New York, Chicago, San Francisco–”

“You have to open one in New York!” Kurt immediately exclaims. “Our little Lila loves to dance!”

“Yes! We could enroll our three kids!” Blaine says mirroring his husbands enthusiasm. “Besides, that would help us gain some free hours for ourselves.” He adds thinking in the advantages of that.

“What have you guys been up to?” Artie asks.

“Well, my amazing husband here is a machine of success. He’s the one paying the bills at home.” Blaine jokes, but his voice reflects how proud he is of the man he loves. “After he finished NYADA, he got the lead role in the revival of _Merlin_ on Broadway and then decided to start his own clothing brand with some help from Isabelle. Now he has his own exclusive boutique and just wrapped his participation as one of the Von Trapp sons in the musical _The Sound of Music_. He’s like the first Broadway star who happens to be also one of the most prestigious fashion designers of the big old city.” Blaine says looking at his husband with adoration.

Kurt blushes a little and shakes his head playfully. “Well, yeah that’s true, I’m doing okay, but I’m not the one paying the bills, Blaine here is not giving himself enough credit. You all have heard his songs right?” He asks to the rest of the table, almost all of them nod except for Madison and Artie.

“After he ended NYADA, he decided to start as an independent singer, but after a couple of months, some important executive heard him play at this bar in the city and offered him a record deal and his first album sold like fresh bread, he won single of the year at the Grammy awards that year and now he’s recording and about to release his fourth album, and he’s nominated for a Grammy as best record of the year for his 3th album!” Kurt says smiling all proudly at his husband.

“So we have two Grammy award winners…” Mr. Schue says excited.

“Indeed” Sam says. “My wife here won last year record of the year and we really hope this years the award goes to Blaine. He deserves it, you guys have to hear his album! It’s amazing…”

“Thanks Sam…” Blaine says smiling friendly at his old friend.

“And what about you guys? Are you still teaching?” Emma asks to Sam.

“Yeah, after I left McKinley and we moved to Miami I got a job at Miami Senior High and since then I’ve been working there while Mercedes works on her music. Miami was a great place for us to move right honey?”

Mercedes nods. “Yeah, my producer has his studio there and it was easier for us, sometimes I have to travel a lot, you know with all the tours and promotion, but we’ve been doing great. That’s why we decided to wait to have kids, I didn’t want to be one of those parents that have to be traveling and leaving their children behind, besides Sam also works really hard so it wasn’t fair to leave him all the responsibility of the kids, but now I’m making a small pause on my career just to start a family.”

“That’s amazing guys!” Mr Schue. says. “We wish you all the best…and how’s the army Puck?” The former Glee Club coach asks noticing the new medals and badges on Puck’s army suit.

“It’s great Mr. Schue, now I’m a Senior Master Sergeant. I just got promoted last year and although we had to move to Washington because I got stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, just south of Tacoma, it’s been pretty great; right babe?” Puck says looking at his wife.

“Yeah, I got a job at the local theater and I’ve been producing small plays and I’m about to start a new column for JBLM newspaper, the base we live on where I’ll share some reviews about the local plays and that stuff.” Quinn shares.

“That’s amazing Quinn and Ummm…Have you two seen Beth? I’m asking you because I saw her last Christmas and she’s gorgeous!” Rachel says.

“Yeah she is…” Puck says proudly. “And although we don’t get to see her often, we are still in touch with her. Shelby let us go visit her and sometimes she spends the summers at our house…”

“Oh, I need to see a picture of her…” Mercedes says, “She must look a lot like you Quinn.”

Puck nods and takes out his phone and starts to show pictures of the 16 year old girl. After some minutes, Artie asks, “And what about you Mike? What happened to Naomi, you to got married, right? Where is she?”

Mike takes a deep breath before replying. “We divorced almost a year ago…” He says. “I caught her cheating on me.”

“What!?” The group exclaims shocked.

“Yeah, I was on Tink’s Tour and I was supposed to come back home a week later, but some dates were canceled very last minute and I took a plane to surprise her and went home and I was the one who got the surprise…” He trails off.

“I’m sorry to hear that Mike…” Artie says patting his friends’ back in a reassuring gesture.

“It’s fine. I’m fine now, it hurt a lot when it happened, but I’m better now…moving on and trying to be happy again.” The Asian man says with a sincere smile on his face.

The group share sympathetic looks and Sam, thinking it’s better to keep moving with the conversation, speaks up, “And Tina…Where’s Shane? Why isn’t he with you right now? He’s the father of your baby right?” He asks, using his usual lack of touch.

“Yes he’s the father…” She whispers, “But he’s-he’s…” She trails off not really able to continue speaking.

Puck notices that her friend lost her voice and grabs her hand to explain what happened. “He died 4 months ago…” He says.

“You’re joking right?” Santana asks quite shocked.

Puck shakes his head and Tina finally speaks up. “He was on duty, some important mission, and there was a fire at some of the camps and he entered and something exploded and…”

“Oh my God! I’m so sorry Tina!” Brittany exclaims standing up and hurrying to hug her friend.

Tina sobs loudly and Blaine immediately grabs her other free hand. “Oh T, why didn’t you call me? I would of been there for you.”

Tina shrugs as tears roll down her face.

“I’m so sorry T, I’m really are.” Blaine says hugging her tightly.

The Asian girl sobs again and excuses herself, quickly standing up and practically running out of the room.

The group of friends look at each other completely confused and not knowing what to do. “I’ll take care of this.” Mike says standing up and walking towards the door in which Tina just disappeared some minutes ago.

Mike runs into the WMHS hallways looking for Tina, he rounds the corner of the gymnasium main hall and immediately stops in his tracks. He cranes his neck to each side when he hears the familiar voice of the Asian girl resounding through the closed door of one of the empty classrooms next to the gym.

_(Tina)…It was two weeks after the day she turned eighteen. All dressed in white, going to the church that night. She had his box of letters in the passenger seat, sixpence in a shoe, something borrowed, something blue…_

Peaking through the small porthole, Mike sees Tina leaning against the green blackboard and singing while tears keep running down her face. The song reflecting every emotion she’s dealing with at the moment.

_(Tina)…And when the church doors opened up wide, she put her veil down trying to hide the tears. Oh she just couldn’t believe it, she heard the trumpets from the military band and the flowers fell out of her hand…_

Mike tries to walk away and just let her be, but something in him stops him and makes him stay there watching through the door how her ex girlfriend and still best friend, cries out all her pain though a song.

_(Tina)…Baby why’d you leave me, Why’d you have to go? I was counting on forever, now I’ll never know. I can’t even breathe…_

Tina starts to walk around the small empty room while slowly rubbing her belly. She knows she has to be strong for her baby, but sometimes the pain is too much and she needs to let it out somehow.

_(Tina)…It’s like I’m looking from a distance, standing in the background everybody’s saying, he’s not coming home now. This can’t be happening to me, this is just a dream…_

The scene is painful to watch, but Mike stands there waiting for the right moment to open the door and let her friend know he’s there for her.

_(Tina)…The preacher man said let us bow our heads and pray. Lord please lift his soul, and heal this hurt. Then the congregation all stood up and sang, the saddest song that she ever heard…_

Tina takes a seat in one of the desks while she keeps singing. Images of the last couple of months without Shane start to flash through her mind and the tears keep rolling down her face.

_(Tina)…Then they handed her a folded up flag and she held on to all she had left of him. Oh, and what could have been and then the guns rang one last shot, and it felt like a bullet in her heart…_

Mike can’t stand it any longer, and carefully he opens the door of the classroom and walks inside. Tina has his back to the door so she doesn’t notice when the Asian man stands by the door just watching his friend perform.

_(Tina)…Baby why’d you leave me, why’d you have to go? I was counting on forever, now I’ll never know. I can’t even breathe…It’s like I’m looking from a distance, standing in the background everybody’s saying, he’s not coming home now. This can’t be happening to me, this is just a dream…_

Tina lets out a loud sob before continue singing and Mike seize the opportunity to walk next to her and grab her hand. Tina just looks up at Mike’s brown eyes while the lyrics of the painful song keep coming out of her mouth.

_(Tina)…Oh, Baby why’d you leave me, why’d you have to go? I was counting on forever, now I’ll never know. Oh, now I’ll never know. It’s like I’m looking from a distance standing in the background everybody’s saying, he’s not coming home now. This can’t be happening to me, this is just a dream…_

Mike tries with all his will not to start crying too, after all these years he still cares a lot about Tina, and for him it is hard to watch his friend so torn.

_(Tina)…Oh, this is just a dream, just a dream…Yeah, Yeah…_

When the song comes to an end Tina sobs again and Mike just closes the small distance between them and pulls her into a tight hug. “Shhhh, It’s okay, you’re okay.”

He says rubbing her back while she cries into his shoulder. “Deep breaths Tina, deep breaths. Think about your baby, he can feel your sadness too. You need to be strong for him or her…” He trails off not really knowing if Tina already knows the sex of the baby.

“He…” Tina says between sobs.

“See? You need to be strong for him….”

“I feel really alone Mike…I don’t know if I’ll be able to make it.”

Mike takes a deep breath and grabbing Tina’s face with both his hands, he says, “Okay, listen Tina. You can do it! You’re strong enough to make it, okay? And you are not alone. I am always here for you if you need someone to talk to.”

Tina nods against Mike’s chest, but remains silent. “I know this is extremely hard for you, I couldn’t even imagine what you’ve been through all these past months, but you have support from me and all our friends, even help with this…” He lays his hand on her belly.

Tina lifts her head and says, “Thank you Mike. I know you’re going through your own things too, but, thank you, it means a lot to me that we can still be friends.”

Mike  smiles at her “Of course…Us Asians gotta stick together.”

They both laugh softly and Mike wipes the tears from Tina’s face. “Are you okay now?”

Tina, visibly more emotionally stable than before, nods and wipes the two tears that escaped her eyes after Mike had cleaned them.

“Are you ready to go back in there? Or do you want us to go somewhere else? I could buy you lunch!” Mike says excited.

Tina shakes her head. “No, I mean I’d love to go have lunch with you, but I want to catch up with all of you. Having you all again near me it’s going to help me!” She says already standing up.

“Okay, then let’s go!” Mike says smiling at her and offering his hand for support.

Tina smiles and with one arm under her growing belly and the other link with Mike’s they make their way back in the gym and towards their friends.

The empty tables quickly start to get crowded and as new faces arrive, the group of friends start to discuss and talk about the guests that keep arriving to the reunion.

“Who’s that?” Mercedes ask pointing to the black-skinned man who entered the room.

“You don’t recognize him?” Mike asks.

Mercedes shakes her head. “It’s senator Rutherford, he was with us at the Glee Club during first year…” Mike explains.

“Oh my God is that Matt?” Kurt asks surprised.

Mike nods as they all stare at the former Glee Club member for a few seconds and then move to the next guests seated beside him.

“And those are Unique and her husband…” Sam explains pointing to the couple next to Matt.

“Really?” Tina questions. “He looks so different…” She says.

“Well, that’s because for starters he’s no longer a he, but a she…She fully transitioned a few years before she graduated college. Then she met this guy Ansel Thomas and got married. She’s now known as Mrs. Thomas. Her pile name is now Monique.” Sam says.

“That’s amazing, she’s very brave…” Blaine says genuinely smiling at his former high school classmate.

“And what happened to the rest of your alumni Mr. Evans?” Santana jokes.

“Well, most of them went to college. Kitty got a cheer-leading scholarship at a university in Boston and moved there to study fashion design, I heard she has a very important fashion blog, but she’s not too popular because she prefers to stay home with her rich husband. Marley also went to college, and she ended up studying to be a vet. I heard that soon after finishing high school some executive offered her a record deal, but she turned it down to continue studying. Ryder is still studying, after high school he took some time off to travel and now he’s back and trying to get his bachelors. I heard he’s studying architecture actually. Puck’s brother, Jake–” Sam is saying when Puck interrupts.

“My little bro got into Julliard and majored in classical dancing and now he’s part of some famous international ballet…” Puck says, his voice sounding proud about his little brother.

“Which ballet?” Mike asks intrigued and genuinely interested.

Puck shrugs. “I don’t know Giselle or something like that…”

“Giselle? For real?” Mike asks shocked.

Puck and Sam nod and Mike just breaths a _‘wow’_ as he imagines Puck’s brother dancing with that crew of professional and super talented dancers.

The group once again starts to look around trying to recognize what used to be familiar faces and spot Dave Karofsky and his husband sharing a sweet kiss. “Wow, that’s something…” Puck says still looking at the happy couple.

“Does anyone knows what happened to him?” Kurt asks curious. He and his husband had seen him arrive but didn’t talk to him, and he really wanted to know what had happened to him.

“Well, I’m still friends with some of the football players and if I recall correctly he got married just a few years ago and adopted a baby. He’s a sport agent now working for ESPN I think…” Mike says.

“Wow…” Kurt exclaims. “So his dream did come true…” He says remembering the conversation he had with him all those years ago.

“I guess…” Mike says nonchalantly.

“And what happened with Sugar, Rory, Lauren and Joe?” Did any of you know if they are coming today?” Quinn asks.

“Sugar is still Sugar…” Mercedes says as a matter of explanation. “Last thing I heard she was still single and spending all her dad’s money…”

They group of friends laugh a little and Mercedes continues. “I know nothing about Rory, but I heard Lauren became a math teacher and now she’s tormenting the kids here on McKinley and Joe is member of his church band and is married to the pastor’s daughter. I think her name is Angel…We received the invitation to the wedding a few years ago, but I had a tour and we couldn’t make it.” The soul diva explains.

“I can tell you about Rory…” Artie suddenly says. From all the people in the table, he was the one who knew less about other people stories, so now they all were intrigued as to why Artie knew about Rory. “He became a very famous singer back in Ireland…I’ve heard a couple of his songs in the local stations, girls seem to really love him.”

“A singer? Well I didn’t expect that, I always thought that he was some kind of–” Sam is saying when the doors of the gymnasium swing open revealing a very peculiar character.

“Is that? is that?” Rachel trails off.

“Uh-hu…” Quinn, Santana, Brittany and Tina agree at the same time.

“Who is it?’” Kurt and Blaine ask not recognizing the man.

“Azmio…” Rachel says.

“Why is he dressing like that…?” Kurt says with a frown on his face, his fashion self clearly making an appearance.

“I heard he’s some kind of international spy or something. He works for the Interpol or that’s what he says…” Sam shares.

“That’s weird…” Puck says. “I never thought that he would be some kind of special agent, I mean he was extremely nosy but an international agent is way too much, you need like special abilities to be one of those dudes, and just look at him…” He says looking at the now old version of Azmio. “He’s still that weirdo that walked these halls all those years ago…”

They all laugh and nod in agreement. It was weird to talk and learn all about the lives their former classmates had had during all these years. It was clear that some of their stories were about success just like the ones they got to live, but it was still weird to picture adults in what they used to know as kids.

“Oh my god is that Becky?” Brittany suddenly exclaims clapping her hands in excitement as a couple arrives into the place.

“It looks like her…” Santana agrees. “Is that her boyfriend, husband?” She asks intrigued by the man walking next to her. He is tall, muscular and very handsome, like a model from one of those athletic magazines.

“Yes…” Coach Sue, who apparently was listening to the whole exchange, pipes in. “That man is her husband, she met him on college and they elope and got married in their first year and being married since then. I thought it was not going to work, but look at them…” Sue says, trying to hide the pride in her voice. It was not a secret that she had a soft spot when talking about Becky.

“Were you listening to our conversation?” Kurt asks offended.

“Yes porcelain I was listening to your girly gossiping…” The still coach says. “Why do you look so surprised Anderhummel?”

“Anderson-Hummel” Kurt corrects her. “And I’m not surprised actually, I’m impressed…”

“Why because after all these years I still have my spying abilities in tune?” Sue asks.

“No, because after all these years you still can hear. I mean, how old are you?”

Sue gives Kurt some killing eyes and points a menacing finger towards him. “You’re going to regret that Porcelain, you’re so going to regret that!” She says storming out and walking to another table.

They all laugh and Quinn, between giggles, just says, “God! It’s so good to be back…”

Eventually, principal Figgins, who returned to his position as director of William McKinley High School around 6 years ago when Sue suddenly got tired of being the principal, takes a stand at the podium set on the small stage and clears his throat to draw the attention of all the alumni.

“Hello everyone and welcome back to William McKinley High School. Today we celebrate the 57th McKinley High alumni reunion and we’re very pleased to have you all here.” He says, taking a moments pause so people can cheer.

“Before we start with the official event I would like to give some announcements first. One, the first floor bathrooms are now officially out of service. I want to thank the hockey team for clogging the tanks with dirty socks. Second, thanks to the generosity of Mr. Al Motta, we will be able to give you all a small gift at the end of the night…” He says raising a strange box “As a souvenir of this reunion.” He says.

The alumni all clap, not really knowing what else to do. “And now, I want to formally thank our talented group of alumni who decided to come here tonight and delight us all with their presence. Ladies and gentlemen, give a round of applause to the old _‘new directions’_!”

People start to stand and begin to clap as the group that was once known as _‘the new directions’_ just look at each other a little ashamed.

“And since they always performed for most of our school events when they attended here…” Figgins continues. “Even some after they left, we were hoping that we could follow the tradition and get you guys back on this stage!”

The group of friends look at each other again not knowing what to say. They would love to perform together again, but this time they are really not prepared.

“I don’t know…” Artie mutters to the group.

“Come on guys! It could be fun!” Mercedes chirps in.

Figgins, noticing the indecision among the group, speaks up, “Please? We tried to bring Air Supply back again, but since some of its members are not longer here…We don’t have a group…”

Quinn laughs and looking at her friends she says, “Okay, why not. Let’s do it!”

They all agree and Quinn immediately stands up followed by Brittany and Santana. Figgins starts to cheer excited as the girls make their way to the stage.

“And what are we going to sing Mrs. Puckerman?” Santana asks when they reach the stage.

Quinn shrugs. “I don’t know, we will have to improvise…But I’m sure we can whip something together on the fly. It wouldn’t be the first time ”

The three girls approach the band and Santana immediately exclaims, “You!?” Pointing to a familiar face.

Brad, the old piano man, looks up. “Why are you still here? I mean, don’t you have a life or something?”

“Santana!” Quinn scolds her and Brittany quickly grabs her wife’s hand. “Anyways, hi ummm, Brad, right? It’s nice to see you again, ummm you look good…” Quinn says politely.

The piano man just smiles softly and hands the girls a bunch of sheet music. They scan them quickly and choose a song.

The band settles on the stage and Quinn, Brittany and Santana, the unholy trinity, position themselves in front of their respective microphones.

(Brittany) _…I stay out too late, got nothing in my brain. That’s what people say, mmm-mmm. That’s what people say, mmm-mmm…_

Taking center stage, Brittany sways her hips as she sings. She points to her head and then playfully rolls her eyes before stepping back and joining Quinn and Santana.

(Quinn) _….I go on too many dates, but I can’t make them stay. At least that’s what people say, mmm-mmm. That’s what people say, mmm-mmm…_

Quinn steps up this time, snapping her fingers to the beat as she sings. Stepping her foot out she shakes it pretending to dance before smiling and giving the crowd a wink.

(Santana) _…But I keep cruising, can’t stop, won’t stop moving. It’s like I got this music, in my mind saying, “It’s gonna be alright.”…_

Gracefully, Santana slides up in front of Quinn and rasps out the next line. She brings her hand and shakes it off as she also shakes her hips while singing.

(Unholy Trinity) _…’Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play, and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate. Baby, I’m just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake, I shake it off, I shake it off. Heart-breakers gonna break, break, break, break, break, and the fakers gonna fake, fake, fake, fake, fake. Baby, I’m just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake, I shake it off, I shake it off…_

The three girls playfully jump around the stage as if they were teenagers again. Following Quinn’s lead they easily find an easy and known dance to do, as the all match each others moves as if no time has passed since they sang ‘ _Come See About Me’_ in the choir room all those years ago.

(Quinn) _…I never miss a beat, I’m lightning on my feet and that’s what they don’t see, mmm-mmm. That’s what they don’t see, mmm-mmm…_

Quinn bounces around the stage sending a wink to the base player in the band, who in return scrunches his brows, giving her a weird look. She makes her way over to Brittany, bumping hips with the tall blonde as Brittany takes over singing.

(Brittany) _…I’m dancing on my own (dancing on my own), I make the moves up as I go (moves up as I go), and that’s what they don’t know, mmm-mmm. That’s what they don’t know, mmm-mmm…_

Jumping off stage and flipping her hair dramatically, Brittany shakes her whole body, making up a few dance moves on the spot. Running through the crowed she finds Principal Figgins and grabs his arm with her left and starts wiggling her limbs around forcing him to dance; which he does proudly with a wide smile.

(Santana) _…But I keep cruising, can’t stop, won’t stop grooving. It’s like I got this music in my mind saying, “It’s gonna be alright.”…_

Santana steps up to the center stage once again and shakes her butt while giving a playful smirk to the crowd. She may have been ten years older now, but she knew she was still just as hot as she was when she walked the halls of McKinley High.

(Unholy Trinity) _…’Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate. Baby, I’m just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake, I shake it off, I shake it off. Heart-breakers gonna break, break, break, break, break and the fakers gonna fake, fake, fake, fake, fake. Baby, I’m just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake, I shake it off, I shake it off…_

Quinn and Santana climb down from the stage and join Brittany in getting the crowd dancing with them, using their sapphic charm. With bumping hips, shaking tits, and charming smiles, soon the whole crowd is shaking their bodies along with them.

(Santana) _…Shake it off, I shake it off, I, I, I shake it off, I shake it off. I, I, I shake it off, I shake it off. I, I, I shake it off, I shake it off…_

Finding a group of former Cheerios, Santana walks over to the group of girls and gives them a smile nod. And all the sudden just like in old times, the three girls and their once known Cheerio mates are shaking it off in front of the whole alumni class’.

(Brittany) _…Hey, hey, hey just think while you’ve been getting down and out about the liars and the dirty, dirty cheats of the world. You could’ve been getting down to this sick beat…_

Using her experienced dance moves, Brittany starts popping and locking causing everyone to stop dancing and watch her dance in awe.

(Quinn) _…My ex-man brought his new girlfriend she’s like “Oh, my god!” but I’m just gonna shake. And to the fella over there with the hella good hair won’t you come on over, baby? We can shake, shake, shake…Yeah ohhh…_

Taking a seat on the edge of the stage, Quinn puts on a fake and shocked expression as she sings. She sways her legs that are dangling from the stage before jumping back up to her feet and shaking her body like an epileptic.

(Unholy Trinity) _…’Cause the players gonna play, play, play, play, play and the haters gonna hate, hate, hate, hate, hate (haters gonna hate). I’m just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake, I shake it off, I shake it off. Heart-breakers gonna break, break, break, break, break (mmmm) and the fakers gonna fake, fake, fake, fake, fake (and fake, and fake, and fake). Baby, I’m just gonna shake, shake, shake, shake, shake, I shake it off, I shake it off…_

The three girls make their way back to the stage, dancing along to the beat, jumping up and down, feeling like seventeen teenagers again.

(Quinn) _…Shake it off, I shake it off. I, I, I shake it off, I shake it off. I, I, I shake it off, I shake it off. I, I, I shake it off, I shake it off_ (Brittany) _…Shake it off, I shake it off. I, I, I shake it off, I shake it off. I, I, I shake it off, I shake it off. I, I, I shake it off, I shake it off…_ (Santana) _…Shake it off, I shake it off. I, I, I shake it off, I shake it off (you’ve got to). I, I, I shake it off, I shake it off. I, I, I shake it off,_ (Unholy Trinity) _I shake it off …_

The song comes to an end and the three former Unholy Trinity members pose in a stance with their arms crossed. It may have been ten years, but they easily feel back into their old routines of being able to sing and dance with each other at any given moment; and they loved every second of bringing back those old memories.

While the three girls make their way back to the table, the group of friends start to talk about their favorite topic so far, their beautiful kids.

“I have a question…” Madison asks looking at Kurt’s phone again. Kurt was bragging again about his wonderful kids while the girls were performing on stage.

“Two of your kids look exactly like Blaine, except for the blonde one, but they are triplets…How did that happen?” She asks looking at the beautiful picture of the three little Anderson-Hummel’s.

Kurt smiles and Blaine immediately jumps in to tell all the story about their kids. “Well, they are triplets but as you already noticed, two of them, Elizabeth and Carter, are genetically mine and Lila is Kurt’s.” He explains.

Madison smiles now understanding the resemblance. Elizabeth and Carter had dark brown curly hair, while Lila, had beautiful almost blonde, but also curled, hair.

“When we decided to start a family we talked a lot about what we wanted and we decided we wanted twins not matter who of us were the biological father, so we both decided to donate sperm. We talked to the doctor, he said it was okay and he helped us find a really nice woman who donated the eggs and a surrogate, but when they started the whole process, three of the eggs ended up getting fertilized and the doctor opted for triplets. We were really surprised but also excited, we were expecting just two and we got three, two beautiful girls, our princesses, and a lovely boy, our prince.” Blaine explains.

“Oh my God and how did you manage to take care of three babies at the same time? I barely can with one and he has not even born yet!” Tina says.

“Well it was not easy T, some night we didn’t sleep at all, our house was a crying mess, but between you and me, it’s been amazing!” Blaine says clearly proud of his family.

“The best thing that has ever happened to us!” Kurt says mirroring his husband’s pride about their family.

“They are lovely!” Madison says handing back the phone to Kurt. “You have a beautiful family!”

“Thanks!” They both say at the same time.

“It’s good to have more than one kid you know?” Puck says. “That way they are not alone, I read somewhere that it’s better when kids have siblings that’s why Quinn and I are planning on giving Richard a little brother or sister real soon, besides Beth of course.” Puck says.

“A little girl would be the death of you Puck!” Mercedes says, “Just imagine a little Quinn like Beth being the youngest…uh-oh I foresee a very jealous dad!” She jokes.

Puck just chuckles and rolls his eyes playfully, he knows that what Mercedes is saying is nothing but the truth.

“What are you guys talking about?” Brittany says as soon as they are back on the table.

“Our kids!” Blaine replies smiling.

“Again? Gosh Anderson-Hummel’s! You need to stop bragging about your kids!” Santana says playfully.

“Why?” Kurt immediately protests.

“Because now it’s our turn.” Santana says taking a seat next to her wife. “You wanna hear the story of how we conceived our beautiful Sophia, Amelia and Aiden?” She asks to the rest of the table.

When she receives nods of encouragement, the Latina clears her throat and starts to tell their story. “Well, almost 6 years ago, one day Britt came home and told me she wanted to start a family right away. My career as an actress was still on the go and I was not ready to carry kids and all that stuff, but I was totally on board to start a family so we talked about it and we decided Britt would be the carrier first since she could control her own hours at work.” Santana explains

“Did you plan to have twins?” Emma asks intrigued.

Brittany shakes her head. “No, not at all actually it was a complete surprise. They are identical twins so we had no idea until we went to the doctors to hear the heartbeat for the first time and found two heartbeats. Turns out that the one fertilized egg we implanted split into two. We were really shocked but we both were really happy!”

“Yeah, exactly.” Santana agrees with a smile, kissing the back of Brittany’s hand. “So when we finally decided to actively try we looked for a sperm donor–”

“A Latino sperm donor!” Brittany pipes in. “We wanted our babies to have Hispanic blood just like Santana.” She explains.

“Right. Then when we started to try for Aiden we discussed getting a different donor, to try and get one that matched Britt’s features but we wanted the kids to have some genetic tie to each other. So, we end up just using the same donor for him too…” Santana finishes the idea.

“Wait, so your kids are biologically related?” Mercedes asks.

“Yeah, same sperm donor, different biological mothers. The twins are half latino and since I carried Aiden he’s completely Latino!” Santana laughs, “But, Britt and I are their parents. So, blood or not, those are our babies.”

“Well that’s amazing girls! Muy bueno!” Mr Schuester says trying to use his little knowledge of Spanish.

“Gracias.” Both Brittany and Santana say at the same time.

“And what about you Emma? Did you guys give Daniel a brother or a sister?” Sam asks.

“We did!” Emma replies smiling her usual soft smile. “We have a 6 year old daughter. Her name is Juliet!”

Mr. Schue immediately takes out his phone and starts to show some pictures of his girl. The little girl looks a lot like her mother, ginger hair, big green eyes and pale skin.

“She’s beautiful!” They all say and Will and Emma smile proudly of their daughter. “And this is Daniel…” He adds changing the picture and wanting to show how handsome his older son is.

“How old is he?” Rachel asks quite surprised by the photo of who they used to called baby Daniel.

“12…” Emma says letting out a sigh, knowing that her little boy was just starting the hard stage of puberty.

“He’s just like you Mr. Schue!” Tina says when she has the chance to look at the picture more closely. Daniel has Mr. Schue’s same curly copper hair and the same physical features that his talented father.

“That’s what everybody says, but him!” Mr. Schue says laughing a little. “All our family and friends say he’s a clone of myself,  but he keeps insisting that he looks like his mother…”

“What about you guys?” Emma looks towards Sam and Mercedes. “Are you planning on having kids anytime soon?”

“We have been talking about it for a while now. And I don’t know about you Sam, but with all this family talk going around it definitely makes me want to start trying for that baby right away!” Mercedes smiles as she laces her fingers with her husbands.

Nodding, Sam leans over to kiss his wife while the rest of their friends in the table just try to look away clearly embarrassed by the romantic exchange happening in front of them.

The reunion is flowing smoothly while the old WMHS band is playing some oldies and some of the alumni are dancing in the middle of the gym where the dance floor was settled.

“I can’t believe they brought back the band, especially Brad…” Quinn says looking at the small stage.

“Who’s Brad?” Tina asks.

“The old piano man, he’s here…Look!” Quinn says pointing to the now completely grey-head of their old piano man.

“He looks old…” Sam says.

“That because he is…” Mike affirms.

“We’re all old so don’t start with that…” Kurt chirps in.

“Speak for yourself Gay-Lips, because I am not old!” Santana exclaims. “I’m still young!”

“Yeah right! And those wrinkles around your eyes, what? Are they signs of youth?” Kurt replies back.

“I don’t have–” Santana is saying when Mercedes interrupts.

“Stop guys! Don’t start fighting, okay? Why don’t we continue talking about our awesome lives?” The soul diva suggests.

Kurt and Santana nod, not before giving each other some menacing eyes silently telling each other that the’ll continue this conversation later.

“So Rachel…” Mercedes continues. “Maybe you’re going to say that I’m a bad friend, but I never had the chance to see the final season of your show. I saw the first 3 season, but then ummm–” She trails off not really sure if she should share her insight about the show.

“–But then the show sucked…I know!” Rachel admits.

“Well, it was not that bad, but it was not the same so I kind of lost interest…”

“I know, I remember that almost 10 years ago when we were having dinner after the screening, some of you, Artie I think, warned me not to let the writers do more than 3 seasons…And he was right…” Rachel says. “I don’t know what happened but even us–” She says pointing to Wesley and her. “–Lost interest you know? It was a great show and it was successful, we got nominated to Emmy’s and even Grammy’s but the writers really lost the silver-line and the show flopped.”

“At least it didn’t ruin either of your careers…” Quinn says.

“I know, we thought about quitting more than once…” Wesley says. “But we decided to keep doing it just for the remaining fans, you know? They worth the last effort.”

“Fans are always worth the effort.” Santana says matter of factly. She has a huge group of fans and she loves to spend some time with them once in a while.

“Always…” Blaine pipes in.

“Blaine!” Artie exclaims. “Since I moved from New York I haven’t heard any of your new songs. That’s the only thing I hate about London, our top forty is still based on old groups, the now thirty something One Direction, Adele and all that British pop that sometimes I hate so much…” He says. “Anyways, but I’d really like to hear one of your songs. I kind of miss your voice, in our senior year I heard you sing every solo in the choir room and I thought I had enough of you, but I really don’t, so would you sing one of your songs?” Artie asks.

“Yeah sure!” Blaine agrees already standing up.

“Wait!” Madison exclaims. “Earlier you said you did a collaboration with Mercedes right?” She asks.

Mercedes and Blaine nod. “Yeah, we did a duet a few months ago it was great!” Mercedes says animatedly.

“Would you mind singing that song?” Madison suggests.

“It would be an honor!” Blaine says extending his hand towards Mercedes, “Lady?” He says.

Mercedes smiles and takes Blaine’s hand as they make their way to the stage. They tell the band the right notes for the song and settle up two mics. “Hi there!” Blaine says drawing the attention of the audience. “It’s an honor for us to be here tonight and since some of our friends asks us, we’re going to sing a song for all of you…”

“The song is called Dress and Tie, we hope you like it!” Mercedes adds, while the very first notes of the song start to echo through the huge room.

_(Mercedes)…Every night I walked the streets, never dreaming what could happen. Sad and so lonely, I saw in the mirror my reflection staring back at me, but will I ever find what I need…_

Mercedes starts to sing while the rest of the audience starts to clap excited. Almost everyone in the room know the song. They don’t like to brag, but this song reached the Billboard’s top 10, and they stayed as number 1 for eight weeks.

_(Mercedes)…But I’ll wear that dress if you wear that tie and baby we’ll dance through the night cause no one’s got what we’ve got goin’, happiness never held on to me until you helped me see that together we’re just better off…_

Blaine dances around Mercedes, while the soul diva keeps singing her part of the song. Meanwhile, in the table, Sam and Kurt, as proud husbands, are clapping excited and singing their hearts out with the song.

_(Blaine)…Oh my heart’s been tried time and again. I always thought that it was me but, I see now just how wrong I was, no I haven’t known you for a lifetime but somehow I’ve never been more…(Both)…Sure that you’re for me…(Blaine) Baby please don’t, don’t leave just come and dance with me tonight…_

Blaine starts to sing his part of the song and keeps his eyes fixed on his husband. Since they met each other all those years ago, every time Kurt is in the audience Blaine tries to sing looking at him directly in the eye at least for a few seconds. It’s his way of showing him that he’s always on his mind.

_(Both)…I’ll wear that dress if you wear that tie and baby we’ll dance through the night cause no one’s got what we got goin’. Happiness never held on to me until you helped me see that together we’re just better off. We’re Just better off…_

Mercedes and Blaine join their voices and sing the chorus of the song. To their surprise, the whole audience sings with them and smiling Blaine removes the microphone from his mouth and directs it to the audience letting them take over the song.

_(Blaine)…Don’t be cruel to me, oh I’ve wanted more but I’ve been wrong before…_

Mercedes grabs Blaine’s hand as he keeps singing and the hazel-eyed singer smiles friendly at his college and friend.

_(Mercedes)…So much learning to lose but you’re not a day too soon…_

People around the reunion start to stand up and make their way to the dance floor just to have a more closer view of the two Grammy award winners.

_(Both)…So say you feel the same and we’ll never be lonely anymore…_

Mercedes and Blaine smile at each other warmly, because after all these years they still can’t get used to people reacting so well to their songs and the feeling is still overwhelming.

_(Both)…I’ll wear that dress if you wear the tie and baby we’ll dance through the night cause no one’s got what we’ve got goin’, happiness never held on to me until you helped me see that together We’re just better off…_

Figgins stands up too and makes his way to the middle of the dance floor where he starts to dance using his peculiar weird and sometimes creepy style of dancing. Some of the alumni join him and start to dance around with him.

_(Both)…I’ll wear that dress if you wear that tie and baby we’ll dance through the night cause no one’s got what we got goin’. Happiness never held on to me until you helped me see that together we’re just better off…_

The former Glee Club table stands up too and starts to swing following the beat of the song cheering their friends along the way.

_(Blaine)…We’re just better off…_

When the song is almost coming to an end, Blaine puts an arm around Mercedes’ shoulder as he uses her microphone to sing his part, moving just in time for her to continue as the switch back and forth to continue until the song ends.

_(Mercedes)…I’ll wear that dress…(Blaine)…And I’ll wear that tie…(Mercedes)…And we’ll just dance through the night…(Both)…Tonight, tonight…(Mercedes)…Tonight…_

When Mercedes sings the last part of the song the audience burst into applause and Blaine and Mercedes just smile and make a small bow thanking the people gather there for their support.

While Blaine and Mercedes keep chatting with some of the alumni who approached them after they finished their song, the group of friends resume their previous conversations.

“Well you two must be very proud of your respective husband and wife.” Artie says to Sam and Kurt.

“Yes! I think I can speak for the both of us and say we are!” Kurt says quickly glancing towards the dance floor where his husband and Mercedes are chatting with Mr. Figgins.

“Good, I’m glad you are, they are very talented!” Artie continues, “And while they come back why don’t you tell us more about how P.L.A.D.’s been doing Britt!” Artie suggest.

“Of course!” Brittany says clapping excited, She loves to talk about her second home as she like to call her dance academy. “The studio has been doing great! We have classes of ages that range from four to umm, I think our oldest student right now is what?” She looks towards her wife, searching for an answer before answering her own question, “–twenty eight, I believe. We do many different competitions all over the United States. We even got an invite to a competition in Paris a few years back. So, I ended up taking the competition team there and we all had a blast. You know besides having to leave San back at home. But, umm yeah, about two years ago I had to expand the studio because I was getting too many people wanting to enroll. So, I bought out the building next to the studio and had them knock down a few walls and expanded the place. But what I love the most about that is that I can take my kids to work all the time you know? Sophia and Amelia both dance there and Aiden comes with us a lot, but I haven’t started him in any classes yet. But he dances with San at home all the time, so, I’m sure we’ll get him into a class in a few years too. He just turned two less than a week ago actually so he still has a few more years before he can get into classes. But I love all the kids at the studio they are like my own kids. One of my best dancers his name is Carter and he’s thirteen now but he’s been with the studio since he was three. He might as well be part of our family isn’t that right, San?”

“Oh, yeah. He’s a great kid. We love him. Him and his mom have become really close with our family.” Santana answers.

“You give both your girls dancing lessons?” Mr. Schue asks a little surprised.

“She takes my kids too!” Rachel chirps in.

“Really?” Mr. Schue asks again.

“Yeah, when the twins were just little babies and San was not home I often brought them with me and they kind of got used to being there. Sophia naturally danced all the time. Even as a little little baby, she would wiggle in her chair to music, it was the cutest thing.” Brittany pauses and looks around the group noticing their silent question. He eyes shift up to her wife and after receiving a soft nod she continues while answering their unasked question. “When Amelia was about three we got her fitted for her first hearing aids. Even though she still can’t hear the music he was able to tell when music was on and she can feel the vibrations. When we would take her to the studio, whether it’d be P.L.A.D. or the small one we have in the house we would place her hand on the bass speakers so she could feel the beat of the music.” Brittany and Santana share a proud smile.

“That girl got her momma’s rhythm that’s for sure. The first time we did that she immediately started bouncing up and down.” Santana gushes about her baby girl.

Brittany nods in agreement before continuing with her story. “So, I started teaching them at home from a young age, kind of playing around like we do with Aiden, and by the time they were 4 I started to include them in the 4-6 class and they loved it. When I told Rachel about it she immediately enrolled Ellie and when Aiden and Ian are old enough we’ll add them to the mix too. They all are very talented!” She says. “Last year for the Christmas P.L.A.D. showcase we did a choreography for _‘rocking around the christmas tree’_ and you should have seen the girls! We had this super big Christmas tree in the middle of the theater and at some point they all forgot the moves and just started to run around it not really following the choreography but Ellie, Sophia, Amelia kept going and everyone thought that that was the original choreography!” She says smiling at the cute memory.

“Aww, that so sweet!” Tina says smiling too.

“Yeah, I have video and everything I just love my kids. Not only my kids and Rachel’s but all my students. They are like my adoptive children!”

“And thank god for that!” Santana pipes in with a playful smile. “Because if they were not adoptive then I don’t know if the money we make would be enough to feed them all.”

Brittany and Santana laugh together and the rest of the table joins while Mercedes and Blaine take their seats next to their husbands.

“Congratulation guys! That was amazing!” Mike says.

“Thank you!” Both, Blaine and Mercedes repeat at the same time.

“You need to make a new tour Blaine!” Mike says. “Last time was an amazing experience!” He says.

“Were you part of it?” Quinn asks intrigued.

“Yeah I was his backup dancer but that was what? Almost 5 years ago?”

“Yeah, exactly 5 years next month” Blaine says. “And I would love to go on tour again, but I still think I need to wait for a little longer. At least until the kids enter school, I don’t want to leave town frequently you know? Tours are demanding and I don’t want to miss the chance to see my kids grow up. They grow up so fast that I wouldn’t forgive myself for not being there watching them achieve things and be happy!” He says and Kurt just grabs his hand and squeezes it tightly.

“You’re right…” Santana says, “It’s hard to be away from home, you miss so many important moments. I did a pause in my career too when the twins were born and obviously when I was carrying Aiden. It’s important for them to have both their parents…”

“I agree…” Emma says, “It’s important for the kids to see both their parents at home, it gives them security and stability.”

“Indeed!” Kurt says, “That’s why we try to be with them as much as possible, sometimes when Blaine is not at home I take them with me to the Broadway shows or to the office, and when Blaine has a concert near home we try to go so they know what his dad is doing, it’s important for them to know that too. In our case we don’t want our kids to grow up thinking that what Blaine and I do is something _special_ , we want them to know that being a singer or a performer it’s a job like any other…”

“Well that’s going to be hard when they get a little older and see their daddies faces all over Manhattan!” Rachel jokes.

“If they handle the situation carefully I think they can do it…” Quinn interferes.

“Just like I did when the twins saw Britt and I on the red carpet for the Oscars. When we arrived home I explained them that although it was an honor to receive an Oscar it was just a recognition of my work, like any other promotion or bonus you get at any other job. We want to make sure that just because their Mami is _‘famous’_ that we don’t think we are better than other people. It’s just our job that we really enjoy doing, and we got a great opportunity to do what we love as a job.”

“Exactly!” Kurt says in agreement. “That’s what we want them to understand, and they will just when they get older, right now they are more concerned with mess around the house and draw all the walls.” He says rolling his eyes at the thought of the recently painted white wall that their three little _‘angels’_ decided to paint using their red crayons.

“So you are in the stage of draw on the walls…” Mr. Schue says smiling.

Both Kurt and Blaine nod with slumped shoulders.

“Richard is at the same stage…” Puck says, “But he’s very talented he draws better than me!”

“Everybody can draw better than you!” Quinn interferes and Puck just pouts.

“You know what we did for Ellie?” Wesley says. “We painted one of our basement wall with this blackboard paint, bought her some colorful chalks and told her to draw just on that wall and that’s how we solved the problem. After some time she got tired and started to appreciate the beautiful notebooks we bought for her.”

“That’s a great idea!” Kurt exclaims. “We need to do that Blaine! We can paint the playroom walls, and we don’t need to paint the whole wall, we could just paint a small part, maybe 3ft they can’t reach farther than that!” The blue-eyed man says already imagining the whole thing.

“We should do that too for Aiden, San!” Brittany says, “–And I could do it for the 4-6? dancerooms at P.L.A.D!”

“Sounds amazing baby!” Santana says leaning over and quickly kissing her wife.

“Isn’t it funny?” Rachel says, “Years ago our conversations were about what we wanted to do when we were _‘adults’_ and now all we can talk about is our kids and how wonderful they are and instead of sharing new songs or something, we share parenting tips!”

They all start to laugh and Blaine says, “Well, we can’t help it. We’re proud fathers and mothers!”

“Indeed!” They all agree as the reunion continues.

“So let me get this straight, you two live in the other side of the planet, but you’ve never been to any other country? How’s that? Don’t people usually goes back and forth between London and all the European countries?” Mike asks to Madison and Artie who were just sharing with the rest of the group some experiences about living in the U.K.

“Well yeah, people with money do that all the time, but we used all our saving for Madison’s center and then for Andrew…” Artie explains.

“But London must be beautiful right guys? You don’t need to go somewhere else, you practically have everything there.” Quinn says.

“It is beautiful, but sometimes we really miss it here. Especially New York, maybe in a few years when Andrew is older we could consider to move back here.” Artie says loosely, knowing it’s still a conversation his wife and him are currently still discussing.

“It’s so weird to think that you don’t live here anymore, although we practically lost contact after Mercedes and Sam’s wedding, I always thought you were somewhere around New York or L.A.” Puck says. “It’s kind of hard to picture you living there.”

“It was hard for me at first, but then I got used to and I kind of like it”

“And do you have many friends there?” Tina asks.

“Yeah, quite a few.”

“And do you go to karaokes and sing together or do you just get together for the afternoon tea?” Sam jokes.

Artie laughs. “The tea is really good, it helps you relax and I’m afraid I haven’t sang much in a while.”

“Since when?” Mercedes asks intrigued.

“Probably since you two got married”

“What!?” The whole group exclaims alarmed.

“We need to rectify the situation!” Puck exclaims immediately standing up and tapping Sam on the shoulder. “Come on Artie! Let’s go to the stage, like old times!” The military man says.

Artie laughs a little but wheels his chair out of the table and towards the stage. “And what are we going to sing?” Artie ask to Sam who’s helping him get into the stage.

“What about some old Maroon 5?” Sam suggests.

“Sounds good.” Puck and Artie agree, and Sam immediately tells the band the song they want to sing.

After some minutes of preparation, the three men grab their respective microphones and start to sing.

_(Artie)…Sunday morning rain is falling, steal some covers share some skin. Clouds are shrouding us in moments unforgettable, you twist to fit the mold that I am in…_

With a headset microphone attached to his head Artie wheels his chair to the right side of the stage. As he moves his arms to the flow of the music he begins to sing.

_(Sam and Artie)…But things just get so crazy living life gets hard to do and I would gladly hit the road get up and go if I knew that someday it would lead me back to you, that someday it would lead me back to you…_

Coming up behind Artie, Sam joins into the song with him as he leans on the back of Artie’s chair. Sam then pulls the chair back to the rest of the group as they all start to move their arms in a dance they all somehow already know.

_(All)…That may be all I need, in darkness she is all I see. Come and rest your bones with me, driving slow on Sunday morning and I never want to leave…_

Puck and Artie move their hands as if they were tracing the outline of a woman, before mimicking the movements of painting with their hands as well. Artie leans forward in his chair, using his upper body to dance and wiggle in his seat as Puck stomps with his feet as they both sing.

_(Puck and Artie)…Fingers trace your every outline, yeah, yeah, yeah, paint a picture with my hands. Back and forth we sway like branches in a storm, change the weather still together when it ends…_

The three boys stand in a small line in the middle of the stage singing. Enjoying the feeling of the soft spotlight shining down on them again. It had been a while for most of them performing like that again, but the familiarity of it was a welcomed feeling that made them smile widely as they continue to sing.

_(All)…That may be all I need, in darkness she is all I see. Come and rest your bones with me, driving slow on Sunday morning and I never want to leave…_

When the song reaches the music interlude, the three friends walk near the band and start to dance around them, Sam slowly pushing Artie’s chair careful not to mess with all the cables and Puck rocking his hips side to side in a sexy move.

_(All)…That may be all I need, in darkness she is all I see. Come and rest your bones with me, driving slow, driving slow yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, there’s a flower in your hair, a flower in your hair, yeah, yeah, yeah, ohhh yeah…._

Puck, Artie and Sam join their voices one last time as the song comes to an end. With the last note, the audience bursts into applause because that was just another great performance from the old new directions.

The afternoon slowly turns into evening and the alumni reunion at McKinley was coming to an end. Mr. Figgins, fulfilling his role as the director takes the stage again and clearing his throat in front of the microphone, he says, “Your attention please! Due to some budget issues we had last month, we rented the place to the AA group to have their weekly meeting so unfortunately we will have to leave the building by 7pm. Having said that, we thank you all so much for coming today and we invite you to come back again in 10 years for the 58th WMHS alumni reunion!”

The people gather there starts to cheer and stand up from their places to hug their friends. Promises of seeing each other real soon start to spread around the tables, except for one. The former New Directions table.

“Do we really have to go?” Sam asks.

“You heard Figgins the AA meeting starts at 7 and–” Puck says quickly glancing to his watch. “–it’s 6:50 so we have less  than 10 minutes to go.”

“10 minutes?” Rachel exclaims somehow alarmed.

“Yes, why?” Quinn asks, not really understanding why the brunette looked suddenly mortified.

“Because no one can leave without hearing me sing again!” Rachel says.

“Of course!” Santana agrees, and just when Rachel is smiling broadly to her friend, the Latina continues, “It wouldn’t be a reunion without Rachel trying to make everything about her.”

Rachel rolls her eyes playfully. “Santana everyone at this table knows how much you love me, so if you excuse me I’m going to sing!” She says storming towards the stage.

Stepping up the three steps to the stage, Rachel stands behind the center mic and taps on in creating a loud thud to echo throughout the room. Once she has everyone in the room staring at her she smiles widely while saying. “Hello everybody. I know you all probably already know who I am, but my name is Rachel Berry. And before we leave today, I would like to close this reunion with the blessing of hearing me sing for free.” Rachel’s smile gets wider as she thinks she’s doing everyone a genuine favor. “I was recently in a Broadway production of the classic play _Wicked_ so, I will sing a song I sang from that play. Enjoy!”

She bows her head and pauses for a second before looking back up and staring out into the distance dramatically, slipping into her once played character, Elphaba.

_(Rachel)…Eleka nahmen nahmen. Ah tum ah tum eleka nahmen. Eleka nahmen nahmen. Ah tum ah tum eleka nahmen…_

Rachel moves her hands around as if she were conjuring a spell, mimicking her moves from her Broadway showing. Leaning into the mic she sings to the crowded room, trying to ignore the way people are starting to inch towards the doorway, knowing it was time for them all to start to leave.

_(Rachel)…Let his flesh not be torn. Let his blood leave no stain.Though they beat him. Let him feel no pain. Let his bones never break, and however they try to destroy him, let him never die…Let him never die…_

Grabbing the microphone from its stand she walks across the stage, bending down and looking at the few people who are still standing in front of the stage, singing to them as if she were pleading to them.

_(Rachel)…Eleka nahmen nahmen. Ah tum ah tum eleka nahmen. Eleka nahmen nahmen. Ah tum ah tum eleka: eleka: What good is this chanting? I don’t even know what I’m reading! I don’t even know what trick I ought to try. Fiyero, where are you? Already dead, or bleeding? One more disaster I can add to my, generous supply?.._

Staying in character, Rachel throws her arms in defeat. She looks up to the ceiling as she sings, acting out the song as if she were still standing on that Broadway stage in New York instead of small town Lima, Ohio.

_(Rachel)…No good deed goes unpunished. No act of charity goes unresented. No good deed goes unpunished. That’s my new creed. My road of good intentions Led where such roads always lead. No good deed, goes unpunished!.._

Rachel’s voice softens as she continues to sing. Walking around the stage with the mic gripped in the palm of her hand. As she holds out the note to _unpunished_ a group of people who had one foot out the gymnasium’s door stop and turn around. There was no lying that Rachel was an amazing singer, but even more so she was great at bring a song alive. No matter how much of a diva she may have come across when she first started singing, it was soon all forgotten as the room was once again reminded who Rachel Berry was as they listened to her amazing voice and watched the emotion in her eyes, making them all believe for a second that she was actually emotionally attached to this song.

_(Rachel)…Nessa. Doctor Dillamond. Fiyero, Fiyero!!…_

As Rachel continues to stun the room full of Mckinley’s alumni, the group of friends that are still sitting at the table, she not so long ago stormed away from, all sit with smile on their faces. Memories of their high school days flashing before them as they all get moved from listening to the short brunette singing. Even some who hate to admit it.

Kurt looks over his shoulders to his friends, letting his eyes land on Santana who has a shy smile on her face. Santana’s eyes meet Kurt’s and she quickly rolls her eyes and turns her smile into a scowl. Kurt chuckles lightly before turning his attention back to the performance in front of him.

_(Rachel)…One question haunts and hurts. Too much, too much to mention: Was I really seeking good or just seeking attention? Is that all good deeds are, when looked at with an ice-cold eye? If that’s all good deeds are maybe that’s the reason why…_

Rachel runs from on side of the stage to the other. She quickly steps down the steps and onto the gymnasium floor, rushing throughout the room as if she were asking each person there the rhetorical questions. She stops in the middle of the room and throws her arms up in the air before dramatically dropping them to her sides.

_(Rachel)…No good deed goes unpunished. All helpful urges should be circumvented. No good deed goes unpunished. Sure, I meant well -Well, look at what well-meant did: All right, enough – so be it. So be it, then: (Spoken) Let all Oz be agreed I’m wicked through and through.._

Stomping her way back up to the stage Rachel flails her arms as she sings. Looking out to the crowd as she says the spoken line narrowing her eyes.

_(Rachel)…Since I can not succeed Fiyero, saving you. I promise no good deed will I attempt to do again. Ever again!!…_

Rachel switches the microphone into her left hand as she pumps her arms with her right, singing aloud with all her might, causing her voice to reverberate loudly throughout the room.

_(Rachel)…No good deed will I do… Again!!!…_

She puts the microphone back on its stand as she stands center stage and as she belts out the last note Rachel holds her hands high in the air. Before she can even take a breath, right after the last note of the song ended the room erupted into applause.

Just when Rachel returns to the table, nearly half the place was already emptied. People are making their way out of the gym and, despite the reluctance of the former New Directions, they knew they’d have to say goodbye and go soon.

“I don’t know about you guys, but I’m not ready to say goodbye to your grown up faces…” Puck says.

“Me either!” Tina agrees.

“What about if we take this little party somewhere else?” Sam suggests.

“Yes!” They all agree.

“Breadstix?” Puck says, “To honor the tradition I mean, it’s been years since the last time I ate there.”

“We really like to go guys, but we have to return home. We left Daniel and Juliet with a nanny and it’s getting late…” Mr. Schue says.

“Why don’t you bring them with you?” Blaine says. “We could all go to pick up our kids, right? That way they all can meet each other too!”

“That’s an amazing idea honey!” Kurt agrees with his husband.

They all agree and stand up from the table. “Well, then Britt and I will go to pick up our kids at my abuela’s house and see you guys at what? 8pm at Breadstix?”

“Your abuela? Are you finally in good terms with her?” Mercedes asks.

“Yeah, long story short after Britt and I got married she wrote me a letter, thanks to Britt of course, and we kept in contact by writing each other letters for a while. We made a few trips out her throughout the years and visited her when we visited our parents, but it wasn’t really until Britt was pregnant with the twins that really brought us back to where we used to be. My mom flew out here for Brittany’s baby shower and when she got her Abuela was with her and she gave Brittany this whole speech about babies and stuff, anyways it was super cute and we’ve been really close ever since then. The kids love her.”

“That’s amazing girl! I’m glad she finally has understood that you’re not any different for loving Brittany.” Mercedes says smiling friendly.

“Thanks Mercedes…” The Latina replies sincerely.

“Well…” Quinn interrupts. “We’ll go to pick up our son from my mom’s house and meet you later, okay?” She says already grabbing her husband’s arm and walking towards the door.

Rachel, Wesley, Artie, Madison, Santana and Brittany also make their way out and Kurt and Blaine follow right behind them. “Then we will meet you there okay guys?” The NY couple says to Sam, Mercedes, Tina and Mike.

“Sure, see you in a few bud!” Sam exclaims as he sees how his friends disappear behind the gym doors.

“Well…” Mike trails off, “We don’t have to go and pick up any kids, so we can go ahead and save some tables right?”

“Sounds like a plan!” Sam exclaims excited. “Do you guys have cars? Or do you want a ride?” He suggests.

“I rented a car and I can take Tina…” Mike immediately says.

“Okay then…” Mercedes says. “Then let’s go, we could order some drinks while we wait for them.”

They all nod and the four friends make their way out of the gym and into the parking lot.

The grey Land Rover parks in front of a two story californian house and immediately Quinn and Puck remove their seat-belts. “Do you think he’s still awake?” Puck asks out of nowhere.

Quinn not really having to ask of what he was talking about just replies. “He’s a Puckerman, of course he’s awake!” She says, her voice sounding proud of her little son.

Puck smiles warmly. “Yes, he is…” He murmurs as he climbs out of the car and hurries to the passenger side to open the door for his wife.

“I love this about you, you know?” Quinn says.

“What?” Puck asks confused and extends his hand to help his wife get out of the car.

“That after all these years you’re still a gentlemen..”

Puck smiles at her and leans over to kiss her. Quinn kisses him back before they walk to the door and she digs into her bag until she finds the keys.

The moment the door swings open, a little kid runs to his dad and starts to climb into his leg. “What’s up little man!” Puck exclaims picking up his son and putting him on his shoulders.

“What’s up daddy!” Richard Puckerman, their 4 year old son, quickly replies playing with his dad’s hair.

“Aren’t you going to give me a kiss?” Quinn asks to her son as she pouts to emphasize that she needs a kiss from her baby.

“Yes!” Richard exclaims leaning over his dad’s shoulders to kiss his mother’s cheek. “I love you mommy!”

“I love you too sweetheart!” Quinn says caressing her son’s cheek. “Where’s your grandma?” She asks noticing that the living room was empty.

Richard shrugs. “Dunno!”

Puck and Quinn look at each other and Quinn immediately runs upstairs to check on her mom.

“Do you really not know where grandma Judy is?” Puck asks.

Richard just starts to laugh and Puck rolls his eyes. This little man was so much like him, a teaser since the day he was born.

“Let’s go find your mom and your grandma because we’re going out for dinner!” Puck says.

“Yes!” Richard squeals.

When the two Puckerman men reach the upper part of the house, they hear Quinn talking with her mom.

“Yeah, they were all there and almost all of them have kids. It was nice to see them again though, being there with them brought back so many memories, some of them painful, but mostly beautiful.” She smiles.

“I’m glad Quinny, and now do you want us to cook something for dinner? Are you guys hungry? I have some leftovers so we could just heat those and–” Quinn’s mom is saying but the blonde interrupts.

“No mom, it’s fine, we’re going out. We are meeting our friends back at Breadstix, we just came to pick up Richard, they want to meet him.”

“Okay, do you want me to help you get him dressed? He was already wearing his pj’s”

“I can take care of that Judy.” Puck says slowly entering the room with Richard still over his shoulders.

Quinn immediately turns around and looking straight into her son’s eyes she scolds him. “Your grandma says you broke a window…Is that true?”

Richard’s little face just turns white and he gives his grandma some killing eyes.

“Is that true little man?” Puck asks.

Richard hides his face behind his dad’s head and whispers a soft _‘Yes…’_

“Why Richard? Why? I told you to behave and now we have to buy grandma a new window because you broke it…” Quinn, in her role of responsible parent, says.

“Quinn–” Her mother tries to interrupt.

“No, mom. He needs to know he did wrong. Richard William Puckerman. Why did you break the window?”

Richard takes a deep breath and replies. “It was an accident, I was playing with daddy’s football helmet and I ran into the window and the glass broke…” He explains.

“And why did you have daddy’s helmet?” Quinn asks, trying to sound still somehow pissed, but failing. The picture of her son wearing the huge football helmet and bumping against the window was flashing through her mind.

“Because daddy gave it to me…”

“Daddy did you give Richard your football helmet?” Quinn asks now giving her husband some killing eyes.

“Maybe…” Puck trails off.

Quinn just rolls her eyes and tries not to laugh. Taking a deep breath she says, “Okay, you two are grounded, when we get home both of you will be banned from entering the T.V. room for a weekend!”

“A full weekend!” Richard immediately protest.

“A full weekend mister!” Quinn states.

“Daddy do something!” Richard says alarmed.

“Sorry man, but we earned this one.” Puck shrugs. “Let’s go get you change before your mom here can come up with a new way of torturing us!” He says winking playfully to his wife.

When Puck and Richard are walking away the room, the blonde could clearly hear the little voice of her son saying, “And what are we going to do without T.V. for a weekend daddy!?” sounding really concerned.

“I don’t know little man, but we’ll come up with something so she can forgive us.” Puck replies to his son in a whisper.

“Sing to her, that always works!” The little Puckerman says before the door closes.

“Did you hear that?” Quinn asks to her mother who has a big grin plastered upon her face.

“Don’t laugh mom!”

“Sorry Quinn, but I can’t help it, they are going to be the death of you. Richard is just…Ummm all I can say…Like father like son…”

Quinn chuckles. “I know…That’s why I love them!”

Rachel and Wesley arrive to the Berry’s house and just when the brunette opens the door of her old house, a peculiar smell makes her stop by the door as she whispers horrorized. “Oh, no!”

Wesley who is standing right behind her,  looks at his wife with a confused expression. “What is it? What happened?” He asks.

But Rachel doesn’t reply, she just storms inside the house and walks toward the kitchen with a very confused Wesley following her.

As soon as LeRoy sees his daughter entering the kitchen he raises his hands from the kitchen table where he was reading a magazine, and says, “Don’t look at me honey! I had nothing to do with this mess…” He says in self defense at the imminent storm he foresees it’s coming.

Rachel dramatically turns around to face Hiram and the kids. Ellie, Ian and their grandpa are all covered in flour. The whole kitchen is a mess and if Rachel didn’t know better she would of not believe this was once her house. The place was beyond recognition.

LeRoy, still with his hands up in the air continues, “This is totally his fault honey, you know your dad. When he sets his mind to something there’s no way of stopping him.”

Rachel huffs and looking at Hiram she just says, “Why now dad? Why? We have to be ready to go in 5 minutes and now thanks to you I’ll have to clean them up!” She exclaims raising her voice a little.

“Don’t get mad baby, we just wanted to bake some cookies, right kids?” Hiram says in self defense. Ellie and Ian nod enthusiastically and Hiram continues explaining. “But apparently something went wrong along the way…”

“Don’t pretend this is the first time you almost destroy our kitchen…” LeRoy says. “Do you remember that time when you tried with our neighbor’s cheesecake recipe? It was a disaster sweetheart, I thought we would have to redecorate the whole kitchen!”

Hiram looks at his husband. “Not really helping LeRoy…” He says.

LeRoy mutters a soft _‘Sorry’_ and returns his attention to the magazine in front of him while Wes tries will all his will not to burst into laugh but a soft giggle escapes from his lips.

Rachel turns around and looks at her husband giving him the same killing look that Hiram gave LeRoy just a few seconds ago. “Don’t you dare to laugh Wesley Grey!”

Wesley bites his lips and just nods, not really sure of what else to do. He knows that if he opens his mouth the only thing that’s going to come out is a loud and resounding laugh.

“But do something! Don’t just stare there looking at me and trying to suppress that grin!” Rachel says following her husband’s silence.

Wesley can’t hold it any longer and he burst into laugh followed by LeRoy who despite pretending to be reading the magazine was paying attention to the whole exchange.

“Unbelievable!” The brunette exclaims.

Wesley takes a step forward into the mess of a kitchen and picks up Ian from one of the stools and grabs his daughter’s hand. “Okay, come on you two!” he says between giggles. “Let’s get you two in a quick bath se we can go hang out with our friends.”

“Are we going out?” Ellie exclaims excited.

“Yes princess, but let’s go upstairs to get you two ready!” The blue-eyed actor says quickly disappearing with both his kids.

LeRoy, noticing that the brunette is still not in her best mood, stands up from the table and leaving his magazine there, he just says, “I think I’ll leave you two alone…I’ll go help Wes with the kids…”

Once LeRoy is out of the kitchen too, Rachel turns around to face her still covered in flour dad.

Hiram gives his daughter a _‘please forgive me’_ smile and lifting one of the cookie trays he just says, “You want a cookie?” Causing the brunette to roll her eyes playfully at her dad. _How can she don’t love and adore her crazy dad?_

After some time, Rachel climbs up the stairs and opens her old room door. Wesley and LeRoy are there almost finishing with the kids. She smiles and enters the room. Wesley is knelt by the bed helping little Ian with his shoes.

“I can help with that…” Rachel says, the previous bad mood long forgotten.

Wesley just smiles and stands up to pick up their kids jackets. “We can go now…” He says. “Do you mind if we borrow your car again Le?” He asks to his father in law.

“Not at all son, we’re not going out. We have a kitchen to clean…” LeRoy says matter of factly.

“Thanks…Come on kids, give your grandpa a kiss and a hug and let’s go.” He says patting Ellie on the back and grabbing his wife’s hand. “We’re still on time baby, don’t worry…” He reassures his wife, knowing too well that she hates to be the last one to arrive.

“Yeah, okay let’s go…” Rachel replies and the Grey family quickly makes her way out of the Berry’s house.

Santana knocks on the front door of her abuela’s house before pushing the door open and walking in, followed by Brittany. And while Brittany is closing the front door the two woman are immediately tackled by their twin girls running into their legs, excited to see their moms.

The two women bend down, each one embracing a twin, kissing their temples. Santana turns her head towards her wife and says, “See? They totally still love us.”

Brittany smiles and hugs Amelia tighter before pulling away and signing, “Did you two have fun with great grandma today?’

“Yes!” Sophia yells, reading her _‘Momma’s’_ sign language. Sophia grabs onto Santana’s hand as Amelia does the same to Brittany’s.

Using her free hand Amelia starts signing as fast as she can telling her mothers all about their trip to king’s island as Sophia pitches in, using sign as well, telling any details her twin sister may have left out.

The four of them make it to the living room, sitting on the couch watching the twins sign animatedly about their trip to Kings Island and how much fun they had when Santana notices the room was empty. She craned her neck to look into the kitchen, finding it too was empty. “Umm girls,” Santana says. “Where is your brother and great grandma?” Santana questions in sign as well as speaking.

Santana looks between the girls, noticing Sophia avoiding eye contact.

 _“Great grandma go upstairs with Aiden to try get him stop crying.”_ Amelia signed.

Scrunching her brows in confusion Brittany looks over to her wife in concern then back to the girls before saying and signing, “Why was he crying?”

Before either girl could respond Santana buts in, knowing her girls all to well. “Nuh-uh. What did you two do to him?” She speaks sternly while signing so Amelia could understand her question.

 _“Promise! I do nothing.”_ Amelia immediately signs back in response.

Looking from one twin to the other Santana raises an eyebrow at Sophia who is now looking towards the ground.

“Well…I-I…Might have told him you guys weren’t ever coming back for him…” Sophia mumbles while signing lowly with her hands down by her lap.

Brittany gasps at her daughter’s words, immediately pushing of from the couch, saying, “I’ll go get him, make sure he’s okay.” before making her way up the steps to find their son.

Narrowing her eyes towards their Snix in training, Santana scolds, “Sophia Marie Pierce-Lopez ¿Qué estabas pensando? (What were you thinking?)”

Sofia finally looks up from the floor to her Mami and says, “Lo siento Mami …” (I’m sorry)

Santana takes a deep breath to keep her own Snix from making an appearance and says, “Just go get your shoes on.” She runs her fingers through her hair before turning to Amelia. _“You too. Go get your shoes on.”_ She signs. _“We are having dinner with some of mine and Momma’s friends.”_

Both girls quickly jump off the couch, running to the door and sitting down on the ground to slip their shoes on.

“And Sophia don’t think I’m letting this go! I will deal with you later!” Santana yells out before sighing, leaning back on the couch, closing her eyes and rubbing her hands over her face.

Santana is brought out of her thoughts when she hears Brittany coming down the steps. She opens her eyes to see her wife cradling Aiden to her chest.

The blonde points over to Santana and tells Aiden, “See there’s Mami.” The small boys cheeks are stained red from where his tears previously flowed down his face. His cries have now subsided to a soft whimper when Santana quickly makes her way over to her wife and lifts her son out of Brittany’s arms. Holding him tight Santana kisses Aiden’s temple before covering his face with kisses. “Aw bebé. Don’t worry Mijo, Momma and I would never ever leave you. Te amo mucho bebé.” (Translation: I love you a lot baby.) She kisses his forehead repeatedly, trying to sooth the barely two year old.

Glancing at her watch Brittany says, “San baby, we’re running late. I’ll grab his shoes if you wanna load them up in the car?”

“Yeah babe, I’ll meet you outside. Tell my mother and abuela I said goodbye and thank you again.”

“Okay, break!” Brittany yells out before turning and running back up the steps.

Standing in her spot for a second longer Santana watches Brittany’s figure disappear up the steps. She chuckles at her wife’s enthusiasm before smiling at Aiden and walking towards the front door yelling, “Okay! Everyone to the car, let’s go!”

Kurt and Blaine arrive to the Hummel’s old house and just when Kurt opens the door, he hears his three kids playful giggles and smiling, he turns to his left side to look at his husband who’s smiling at the lovely sound too.

Not wanting to interrupt whatever the kids were playing with their grandparents, Kurt and Blaine silently make they way to the living room to find Burt and Nicholas playing to catch the kids while the three little ones just run around the living room coffee table screaming and laughing. Pam and Carole are both sitting by the dining table talking to each other and drinking some tea without really paying much attention to the chaos happening next to them.

“We are home!” Blaine yells excited and drawing the attention of the kids.

Lila, Elizabeth and Carter immediately run towards their dads and raise their little arms so that Kurt and Blaine can pick them up screaming _‘Daddy!’ ‘Papa!’_ clearly excited to see their dads again.

Kurt picks up Carter while Blaine picks Elizabeth. Lila, being as restless as she is, jumps between her dads and hands one arm in each of them, hanging loosely from them.

“We missed you so much babies!” Kurt exclaims smiling at their three kids.

Nicholas and Burt, who are looking at the cute little family from afar, smile at each other. Their respective sons and their kids are without a doubt a beautiful family.

“You guys kind of arrive early, we thought you’d be late, didn’t you guys have fun?” Burt asks.

Before they can answer Lila jumps down and Kurt puts Carter on the floor next to his sister. Elizabeth just clings into her dad tighter.

“Yeah, we did!” Kurt says. “It was fun to see all of them again and in fact we just came home to pick up the kids, we’re meeting the old gang down at Breadstix” He explains.

“And how’s everyone?” Carole asks finally standing up from the table and joining the conversation. “How’s Rachel? I haven’t seen her in what, 5 years? I met Ellie when she was just a little baby…”

Blaine smiles and giving Elizabeth to his dad he says, “They are all good! Almost everyone has kids now and we will meet them tonight. And Rachel has two now, Ellie and a little boy named Ian if I recall correctly…” He explains.

“I’m so glad you guys could spend some time with your old friends.” Pamela says getting closer and caressing both Lila and Carter’s heads.

“Yeah it was nice mom and we would like to tell you guys all about it, but we really have to go…” Blaine says.

“Yeah don’t worry, let me get you some jackets for the kids…” Carole says already walking to the couch where they left the kids jackets after they came back from the park.

“Thanks Carole.” Blaine replies.

“Blaine, could you bring the stroller please? I left it upstairs.” Kurt tells his husband while he helps Carter to get into his jacket.

Blaine nods but Nicholas interrupts. “No son, the stroller is not upstairs, is at my car. We took the kids for a ride…” He explains.

“Oh, okay…” Blaine says with a smile.

“Let me get that for you.” Nicholas says disappearing through the front door to get the stroller.

“Thanks dad!” Blaine says and Kurt finishes helping the kids with their jackets.

“Say buh-bye to your grandpa Burt and grandmas Carole and Pam.” Kurt instructs their kids who immediately run and give the adults a sweet kiss.

Kurt and Blaine smile at each other just when Nicholas opens the door and says, “Open the trunk son, so I can put the stroller there…”

“Oh, yeah, sorry!” Blaine says pressing the car remote to open the trunk.

Kurt and Blaine say their goodbyes to Burt, Carole and Pam and grabbing their kids little hands, they walk out the house.

After getting themselves comfortable in their chairs and settling their kids in the table next to them, the group of friends order some refreshments and ease into conversation.

“Do you guys remember that time when we shared the jar of peanut butter at the auditorium?” Will asks.

“Of course we do Mr. Schue!” Mercedes exclaims. “Tonight my dream came true. I finally met Rachel’s kids!” She says laughing a little.

The rest of the table laughs with her and suddenly they all are sharing their own dreams come true experiences.

“That day I said that I wanted to buy my folks their own house and after a few years and with a little help from my wife, I finally bought them a house in Kentucky…” Sam shares with a proud smile.

“My dream was to graduate from high school…” Puck says remembering what he said that day. “And it kind of came true the next year after that, but I also tried to make Finn’s dream came true and now that I’m Senior Master Sergeant I think I did Finn and his dad justice don’t you think?”

They all nod and Quinn leans over and gives her husband a quick kiss before sharing her own experience too. “And I actually graduated top of my class at Yale so another dream that came true for the list!”

“My abuela and I are now fine with each other.” Santana says with a small shrug before continuing. “It’s funny, but that day I remember I said something about wanting my abuela to love me again and the truth is, she never really stopped loving me…It was hard for her, but now she understands and accepts me for who I am and we’re now a real family.”

“Lord Tubbington kicked his ecstasy addiction when we first moved to L.A.” Brittany says also sharing her own story of success.

“Well, my dream also came true…” Blaine says grabbing his husband’s hand. “Now there’s marriage equality in all 51 states!”

“And my dad made a difference in congress!” Kurt says. “He helped to establish all those laws that have helped with gender equality and rights for people in the LGTBQ community.”

“I got the chance to dance at the Carnegie Hall when I was still studying and we had our final Open Working Rehearsal there…” Mike shares.

“And I had my song…” Tina exclaims excited causing the entire group to laugh with her.

Rachel looks up to her friends and remembering what she said all those years ago, she speaks up. “And my dream also kind of came true, because even though we haven’t seen each other in years, we are still friends…”

They all nod and hold hands in the middle of the table as the waiter arrives and starts to put the drinks on the table.

“Who’s missing?” Will asks already looking towards Artie.

“Well, my dream haven’t come true just yet…” He says looking towards his little son who’s very much asleep in his mother’s arms. “But I’m sure it will come true very soon, this little one is eager to start running around the house!” He says proud of his son.

They all smile and Will raises his drink and clears his throat. “I propose a toast!” He says, “To us, to our families and to dreams come true!”

“To dreams come true!” They all cheer and clink their drinks in the air.

The night starts to flow and while the kids are eating either burgers and fries or chicken nuggets the adults are all immersed in easy conversations about their jobs and lives in general.

“And the other day we traveled back to New York to my 3 weeks run as Jasmine in the Aladdin revival and–” Rachel is saying when Kurt interrupts .

“So you travel all the time to New York and you never call! And I thought I was the bad friend!”

“I’m sorry okay? It won’t happen again…Anyways, like I was saying, we traveled to New York and Wesley and the kids were with me so we went to Coney Island to have some fun and spend some time together and there was this man playing the guitar and out of nowhere Ellie started to sing with him, right Wes?” She nudges her husband.

Wesley just nods and Rachel continues bragging for the millionth time in the night about her daughter. “And she did so great guys! People started to gather around her and take pictures of her and tip this guy who thanks to our talented daughter got almost 300 with one song!”

“That’s amazing Rachel congrats!” Mercedes says all friendly.

Santana, a bit tired of hearing the same story over and over again speaks up, “Yeah, she’s talented but, not that talented! She can’t even dance without hurting someone, and Sophia can do both perfectly!”

“Ellie is more talented!” Rachel fights back and just when Santana is about to reply, Kurt raises his hand and clears his throat.

“Ladies, ladies if I may…” He says drawing the attention of everyone. “I don’t doubt that both your girls are talented, but Lila is gifted! You should see how she sings when her dad plays the piano, she’s going to be a star someday, and don’t let me start with Carter, because our boy inherited all of Blaine’s charming stage persona, he’s a little shy, but man! That boy can sing! I bet that when he’s a little older he’s going to swipe away your kids!” Kurt states sure of his kids’ talent.

Mercedes immediately snaps her fingers, “Not so fast Kurt, you all may have talented kids, but that’s because I still don’t have kids, but wait for Little Mercedes or Little Sam to come and smash your children in one of those classic mini-diva’s off!”

They all laugh, but Rachel wanting to prove how right she was about her talented daughter immediately calls Ellie.

Ellie stands up from the kids table and rushes next to her mother. “What is it mommy?”

“Honey, do you remember the song you sang for us this morning?” Rachel asks her daughter.

“Yes…”

“Rachel…” Wesley interferes, already knowing what his wife was intending to do.

“Don’t Wes…” She says looking at her husband and then focusing her attention towards her daughter. “Could you sing us that song right now?”

Ellie starts to nod frantically, just like her mother, she loved to have the opportunity to brag about her own talent.

“See that microphone over there?” Rachel points into the distance. “Why don’t you use it and sing all my friends that beautiful song.”

With that said, Ellie in all her inner diva self, runs to the stage and starts to ask around for someone to help her put her song.

“She just learned this song today, so she hasn’t rehearse it at all!” Rachel adds as Ellie introduces herself to the almost empty restaurant.

“Hello friends, I’m Ellie and I’ll be singing Part of my World from one of the old Disney movies, enjoy!”

“Oh my goodness, she’s like a new Rachel Berry!” Quinn whispers not so loudly, but almost half the table could hear her.

_(Ellie)…Look at this stuff, isn’t it neat? Wouldn’t you think my collection’s complete? Wouldn’t you think I’m the girl, the girl who has everything?…_

Ellie starts to enchant everyone with her lovely voice, she’s just like her mother in so many ways that the group of friends can’t help but smile warmly. Sometimes, when they were younger Rachel’s antics really got the worst out of almost all of them, but now watching her little daughter perform on the stage just made them smile.

_(Ellie)…Look at this trove, treasures untold. How many wonders can one cavern hold? Looking around here you’d think, sure, she’s got everything…_

Ellie starts to dance around the stage as she continues with her song, doing some over the top dramatization of the choreography that her grandparents showed her that morning.

_(Ellie)…I’ve got gadgets and gizmos a plenty. I’ve got whozits and whatzits galore. You want thingamabobs? I’ve got twenty! But who cares? No big deal, I want more…_

Santana notices that Ellie is practically stealing the spotlight and gives Sophia, her daughter, a _‘go get her’_ kind of look and the young twin quickly stands up from the table and grabs a microphone to sing along too.

“Move Grey!” She mutters before starting to sing.

_(Sophia)…I wanna be where the people are, I wanna see, wanna see them dancing. Walking around on those, what do you call ‘em? Oh, feet…_

While Sophia sings, Ellie gives her mother a _‘now what do I do?_ ’ kind of look and Rachel just mouths _‘Keep singing’,_ so the little girl steps in front of Sophia and continues her song.

_(Ellie)…Flipping your fins you don’t get too far, legs are required for jumping, dancing, strolling along down a…What’s that word again?…_

Lila Anderson-Hummel, being her usual troublemaker and attention seeker self, stands up from the table and runs to the stage, grabbing a microphone and yelling.

_(Lila)…Street!_

Kurt and Blaine look at each other laughing at the adorableness of their little daughter. “That’s our little princess, always trying to steal the spotlight…” Blaine says still looking all adorably towards the stage.

_(Sophia)…Up where they walk, up where they run, up where they stay all day in the sun. Wanderin free, wish I could be, part of that world…_

Not wanting to be left behind, Amelia stands up too and while her twin sings again, she dances around the stage doing acrobatic moves and flips that without a doubt her momma taught her.

_(Ellie)…What would I give if I could live out of these waters? What would I pay to spend a day warm on the sand? Betcha’ on land, they’d understand, bet they don’t reprimand their daughters. Bright young women, sick of swimmin, ready to stand…And ready to know what the people know. Ask ‘em my questions and get some answers…_

While Ellie takes over the song again, Amelia and Sophia start to dance together swinging around the stage until Amelia climbs up onto one of the speakers there and jumps off of it onto the stage causing Santana, who was watching the performance intently, to gasp in horror.

“I swear that girl is going to give me a heart attack!” She mutters to the table.

_(Ellie and Lila)…What’s a fire and why does it – what’s the word? Burn?_

Ellie grabs Lila’s hand and together they sing the next part of the song and shortly after, Sophia joins and holding hands with the other girls she sings too.

_(Sophia)…When’s it my turn? Wouldn’t I love, love to explore that shore up above?…_

Finally the three little girls joins their voices to sing the last line of the song while Amelia, in all her grace, dances around them giving her best ballet moves.

_(All)…Out of the sea, wish I could be…Part of that world…_

When the song comes to an end Kurt, Blaine, Wesley, Rachel, Santana and Brittany practically jump from their seats and stand up to give their children a standing ovation. The rest of the table smile too and stand up to clap to the talented kids who are now bowing and smiling all warmly to their small audience.

After the performance, the ice wall that was among the children finally breaks and they fall into easy conversation. Ian, Carter, Elizabeth, Lila, Aiden and Nicholas hit it off immediately since they have almost the same age and start to play with the toys they brought. Ian, Richard and Carter are particularly lost with the Lego blocks, while Aiden, Lila and Elizabeth are playing with the stuffed animals pretending to recreate a zoo and using the napkins and silverware as the cages. On the other hand, Sophia, Amelia, Juliet, and Ellie start to chat animatedly about movies they’ve seen and stuff they like.

Daniel, who is the oldest, gets bored of the childish conversations and starts to bother the little ones, throwing spitballs in their direction. Lila and Lizzy just ignore him, and resume playing with their stuffed animals. Carter, Richard and Ian, look at the older kid as of he was from another planet, but little Aiden’s eyes well up with tears when one of the spitballs hits him in the face.

Juliet notices her brother attitude and says, “I’m going to tell dad Daniel!” threatening her brother to spill the beans with their dad.

Daniel just shrugs and keeps sending spitballs in the kids direction.

Sofia turns around and notices her brother’s teary eyes. She snaps and says, “Don’t you dare to keep bothering my little brother or I’ll go all Lima Heights on you!”

The adults notice the little fight and Will immediately calls Daniel to scold him. Kurt, hearing what Sophia just said whispers into Santana’s ear, “Did you teach that to your children?”

Santana shrugs and then winks at her daughter, proudly that her little mini-me had defended her brother.

When Daniel returns to the table, Juliet glares at her brother one last time before shifting her gaze over to the Pierce-Lopez twins. “I’m sorry about my brother.” She says to the girls and notices the way Sophia moves her hands every time she speaks.

The red hair girls scrunches her brows in confusion but decides to ignore the girls weirdness. Looking from Sophia to Amelia, Juliet notices something she didn’t notice before. “Hey, why do you have those things on your ears?”

Once again Sophia moves her hands as Juliet talks then answers Juliet’s question for Amelia. “She can’t hear you. You have to talk to her with your hands. It’s really cool you should learn too. And those things on her ears give her super magic powers is what my Mommies say.”

Not really understanding Juliet just gives a simple shake of her head.

Watching the interaction between the children Mercedes and Kurt share looks as well. Without it having to be said everyone had gathered by now that Amelia was deaf. They all noticed the way the little girl didn’t talk with her voice but used her hands instead, but they too hadn’t noticed the hearing aids before. Looking up from the kids Kurt cocks his head toward Santana and Brittany silently asking the question they were afraid to voice themselves.

“It’s okay Kurt you can ask.” Santana quips.

Giving back a small smile Kurt says, “I’m sorry, I didn’t want to be rude or pry.”

“Kurt, she’s five years old it’s not like she doesn’t know. And trust me by now we are all used to the questions. It’s okay to be curious and ask. We aren’t ashamed and there is nothing wrong with it.” Brittany states simply running her fingers through Amelia’s hair and smiling when the little girl leans into her side.

“Okay.” Kurt smiles at his long lost friends. “So, can she hear at all?”

Santana sets her drink back on the table after taking a sip. “Well, long story short, Amelia is profoundly deaf. She can’t hear anything without the hearing aids and even with them she can hardly hear anything. Mainly it’s just to help her aware of her surroundings. If there’s a loud noise going on around her she can at least tell something going on but she can’t really hear what it is.”

“I’m just amazed at how well you two have handled it.” Will says, jumping into the conversation.

Santana and Brittany share a look before Brittany speaks up, “Well, her and all the kids have easily picked up on sign language. We started learning it as soon as we found out that she was deaf. We did a lot of research and decided that sign language was the best route for us to take, and according to her doctors and teachers at school she’s actually above average intelligence for kids her age.”

“She does get her geniusness from her Momma.” Santana smiles before leaning over and giving her wife a peck on the cheek. “And Brittany and I can testify that being deaf had never hindered that child. She is the biggest dare devil of them all and the most talkative of our three children too.” Brittany nods her head eagerly in agreement before leaning down and kissing Amelia’s forehead and signing _‘I love you.’_ to the little girl.

Like everything in life, the small meeting comes to an end and the time to say goodbye finally arrives. The adults pay the bill and when they start to stand up, the drama begins.

By this point, all the kids, in their innocences, have become very good friends so naturally they don’t want to go.

“Come on kids it’s time to go!” Wesley says picking up Ian and grabbing Ellie’s hand.

“I don’t want to go…” Ellie says looking at the rest of the kids.

“We have to baby, but we will see them really soon, okay?”

Ellie reluctantly nods and follows his dad. Puck comes closer and carries Richard after assuring him as well that he would get to see his new friends soon.

Juliet and Daniel walk next to their mom and the rest of the kids start to say their goodbyes. Aiden and Elizabeth start to cry while they sob loudly that they don’t want to go.

Brittany smiles at her wife and comes closer to grab their little son while Blaine leans over and picks up Elizabeth.

“Don’t cry Lizzy, we will see your new friends all the time, I promise!” Blaine says in an attempt to calm his crying daughter.

Elizabeth shakes her head and just keeps crying with Aiden also yelling by her side in his mother’s arms.

“Baby…” Brittany says caressing her son’s hair. “Don’t cry, we’re telling the truth, we will see all of them again soon…”

The two kids just keep crying and Kurt grabs both their tiny hands and tries to help. “Yeah sweethearts don’t cry, we’ll see each other again for Thanksgiving!”

“Yeah and we will go and visit them too!” Santana adds, rubbing Aiden’s back as he rests his head on his _‘Momma’s’_ chest. His cries now softened to a whimper, tears still evident in his eyes.

The two teary kids nod and very reluctantly all the families say goodbye. The adults say goodbye too for the last time and promise to see each other really soon and to keep in touch.

“Bye everyone! We will keep in touch and make plans for the holidays!” Puck exclaims with a wave, while he climbs into his car. Turning the car on and backing out to drive away once his wife and kid are safely buckled in their seats.

The rest of the gang wave goodbye and slowly make their ways to their cars, leaving the parking lot of their favorite Lima place empty.

By the time the Grey family makes it back to the Berry’s house, Ellie is already asleep in the back seat of the car. Carefully, Wesley picks up his daughter and takes her downstairs to what used to be the Oscar’s room and now is turned into a mini kids room for when the Grey’s come to stay.

Rachel, who is carrying a still very much awake, Ian, puts the small kid on his bed and helps her husband to put Ellie under the covers.

“Have sweet dreams!” The both whisper to their daughter when the little girl opens one eye, feeling the strange change in the atmosphere.

“Go back to sleep honey, we’re home.” Rachel says, and Ellie immediately falls back to sleep.

Wesley walks to the closet and takes out Ian’s pajamas while Rachel starts to undress the little boy.

“I don’t wanna go to sleep mommy!” Ian says jumping on the bed.

“You have to sweetie…” Rachel replies grabbing the pajamas her husband is handing her and immediately changing the boy.

“I’m not tired!” Ian protests. “I don’t wanna sleep!”

Wesley stops the boy from jumping and smiling he says, “You have to sleep champ, tomorrow we return home and we need to rest…”

Ian gives his biggest pout. “I don’t wanna go home either. I wanna stay here! I like here!” He says innocently.

Rachel sits in one side of the bed and grabs her son’s hand. “We will come back for Thanksgiving and Christmas sweetie!”

Ian pouts again, clearly not convinced by that answer. “What if instead we take grandpa Le and grandpa Hi with us?”

Wesley laughs a little. “We could ask them tomorrow if they want to go to Cali, but now you need to sleep okay?”

Ian nods and finally gets into bed, but before closing his blue eyes, he adds. “I want Lila, Lizzy, Carter, Richard, Aiden, Juliet, Sophia, Amelia and Andrew to come too…Daniel can stay because he throw things at us.” he list off almost running out of breath.

Rachel chuckles. “Okay baby, we will ask them tomorrow too, now go to sleep…” She says kissing Ian’s forehead and humming him a lullaby until the little angel falls asleep.

Once Ian is completely asleep Wes grabs his wife’s hand and help her stand up and climb up the stairs to go to what used to be her childhood room.

“We could stay more days if you want…” Wesley suggest when they are changing into their pajamas too.

Rachel shakes her head. “No, we need to go back babe. The kids have school, you have your filming schedule already set up and I need to rehearse…

“Okay, as you wish…” Wesley says. “Back to our complicated lives…”

“Back to our wonderful complicated lives…” Rachel corrects her husband.

“Back home…” He says with a smile on his face so big that looks like it will explode.

“Back home…” Rachel whispers back mirroring her husband’s smile.

Wesley walks the distance between them and grabs Rachel by the waist to pull her closer to him. “I love you…” He says, leaning over to kiss her.

“No more than I do…” Rachel says.

“Wanna bet?”

Rachel laughs, because apparently after all these years of marriage, her husband still don’t understand that she always, always, win. “You really want to bet Wesley Grey? You know I’m going to win, I always win…”

“Probably, but that’s just because I let you win, because I. Love. You. More…” He says kissing Rachel when repeating the last words.

Rachel chuckles and rolls her eyes playfully at the man in front of her. “I know, but as usual you’re wrong honey because. I. Still. Love. You. More!” She says, doing the same her husband did, and kissing him with each word.

“Okay, I’ll let you win this, now let’s watch a movie and then go to sleep…” He says turning on the T.V.

Rachel jumps into the bed and starts to change the channels until she finds a good movie. The Phantom of the Opera.

“You know?” Rachel says while Wesley is laying next to her. “I’ve always wanted to sing a song from this musical…”

“And you never have?” Wesley asks intrigued.

“Of course I have, but I mean it with you…”

Wesley smiles softly and muting the T.V. he starts to hum and sing just to humor his wife.

_(Wesley)…No more talk of darkness, forget these wide-eyed fears; I’m here, nothing can harm you, my words will warm and calm you. Let me be your freedom, let daylight dry your tears; I’m here, with you, beside you, to guard you and to guide you…_

Rachel smiles warmly when she recognizes the song and sits on the bed next to Wesley while they hold hands and the blue-eyed actor keeps singing.

_(Rachel)…Say you’ll love me ev’ry waking moment; turn my head with talk of summertime. Say you need me with you now and always; promise me that all you say is true, that’s all I ask of you…_

Wesley smiles and encourages his wife to follow the song. Rachel, without second thoughts, starts to sing completely killing the song with her amazing voice.

_(Wesley)…Let me be your shelter, let me be your light; you’re safe, no one will find you, your fears are far behind you._

Wesley keeps singing as he stands up from the bed and walks to the other side to help his wife stand up too, and dance around with him.

_(Rachel)…All I want is freedom, a world with no more night; and you, always beside me, to hold me and to hide me._

Rachel completely lost in her best interpretation of Christine, starts to overact all her moves, dramatically dancing around while Wesley holds her in his arms.

_(Wesley)…Then say you’ll share with me one love, one lifetime; let me lead you from your solitude. Say you want me with you, here beside you, anywhere you go, let me go too, Rachel… that’s all I ask of you…_

Wesley following the lead of his lovely wife, starts to overact too, remembering all those years ago when they were just starting their relationship and they sang that song from Wicked and acted around the T.V. set.

_(Rachel)…Say you’ll share with me one love, one lifetime. Say the word and I will follow you._

Rachel turns around and faces Wesley while she sings her line, looking straight into deep bright blue eyes.

_(Both)…Share each day with me, each night, each morning._

The dramatic, but ludicrously charming, couple join their voices again creating the perfect harmony to sing the final part of the song.

_(Rachel)…Say you love me …_

Rachel whispers her lines and grabs her husband’s hand, where his wedding ring has already left a mark on it.

_(Wesley)…You know I do._

Wesley smiles at his wife and leans over to quickly kiss her before continuing singing.

_(Both)…Love me, that’s all I ask of you …_

Their voices melt again into one and they belt out the last lines of the song. Using the song as a way to tell each other how much they still love each other.

_(Both)…Anywhere you go let me go too…Love me, that’s all I ask of you…that’s all I ask of you…_

When Sam and Mercedes arrive to the Jones’, the Grammy award winner suddenly panics, something that was supposed to be in the back pocket of her jeans is no longer there. “Sam…” She says, her voice trembling. “I-I think I lost the keys…”

“What?” Sam asks worried. All the lights inside the house are off so that means that his in-laws are already asleep.

“I had them here in my pocket, but they are gone…” She explains.

Sam immediately opens the car again. “Maybe they fell in here, let’s take a look. I don’t want to wake up your dad, he’s going to kill us!” He says a bit worried. It was true, his father-in-law was a little bit grumpy when you interrupted his precious hours of sleep.

Sam and Mercedes look everywhere, but in fact, the keys are nowhere to be seen. “Shit, they are not here…” Sam mutters.

“Now what?” The diva asks looking into her husband’s green worried eyes.

“We could try to break in…” He suggests.

Mercedes thinks about it for a minute and then nods. _What other option do they had?_

“Okay, let’s try with the kitchen door okay?” Mercedes says, knowing that that was the only door that only had one lock.

The couple walks to the back of the house and make their way into the kitchen door. Sam grabs the doorknob and tries to open it. Hoping that for some miracle his in law had decided to leave in unlocked. But no, the door was closed. “Well, we had to try it right?” He shrugs.

Mercedes laughs a little and just nods. “Have you ever picked a lock?” She asks, looking at the doorknob and not knowing what’s the next step.

Sam shakes his head. “No, but it can’t be that hard right? Let me ask google, he knows everything…”

Mercedes nods and Sam takes out his phone and starts to look for tutorials of how to pick lock on a doorknob in 2 minutes. After some intense minutes of browsing, the blonde man finally has an idea of what he needs to do. “Look babe, this guy opens a door similar to this one in less than a minute, I think I can beat him…” He says sure of his abilities.

Forty minutes later, the door is still closed. “And if we just knock?” Mercedes suggest, she’s tired of holding her phone to light the door so Sam could see.

“No, I just need to try with–” Sam is saying when they hear some steps coming from one side of the house.

“Someone’s coming!” Mercedes whispers while she grabs her husband’s hand and they try to hide behind the shrubbery.

“Maybe some neighbor saw us and they called the police…” Sam whispers.

“Shhhh.” Mercedes says, the steps are hear more clearly, whoever this person is, it’s definitely close.

A tall man stands by the door and looks around. Mercedes and Sam have their eyes closed and are holding their breaths. “Sweetheart? Sam?” The man says.

“Dad?” Mercedes says opening her eyes in surprise.

“What are you two doing down there?” He asks even more confused. “I thought someone was trying to break in…”

Sam and Mercedes finally stand up. “We were trying to break in….” Mercedes explains. “I lost the keys and we didn’t want to wake you…”

Mr. Jones frowns. “Well, we weren’t home sweetheart, we’re just arriving…” He says.

“Oh…” Sam and Mercedes mutter at the same time.

“Next time just text me honey and don’t hesitate to wake me…And Sam, let me show you how to pick a door knob lock, maybe right now it seems silly, but when you two have kids you’ll find that knowing how to open doors is pretty useful…” The tall man says leaning over and taking out from his wallet a strange and thin metal bar.

“This things are very useful.” He says. “Ladies call them bobby pins but I call them live savers…”

Sam smiles and pays attention. His father in law immediately goes to the door and with two single movements the door cracks open. “See? The trick is in knowing how much pressure you have to put in the lock…”

Sam and Mercedes look at each other and laugh. A 60 something man had just open a door in less than 20 seconds using a bobby pin and yet, the couple had tried for almost an hour using some wire they found inside the trunk of the car and nothing had happened.

“Thanks dad…” Mercedes says.

Mr. Jones smiles and hands Sam the bobby pin. “Here take this son, one day you’ll thank me…When Mercedes was a toddler she liked to close the doors and lock us out, I think it’s in her blood so I’m sure one day you’ll need it…” The old man says smiling warmly at the blonde.

“Thanks sir…”

“Now let’s go inside, and tell us all about your reunion.” He says making his way inside the house where his wife was already pouring some coffee in 4 mugs.

After half an hour of sharing all the details about the WMHS reunion, Mercedes’ parents call it a night and go upstairs to sleep. However, thanks to all the coffee they ingested, Sam and Mercedes are not remotely tired.

“We could watch a movie…” Mercedes suggests after Sam shared he wasn’t tired.

“Or we could work on baking that baby…” He says winking at his wife.

“Not in here Sam, for God’s sake my parents are in the room next door…” Mercedes says blushing a little.

“Okay, then I suppose the movie sounds good, though once we’re back home we’re so going to work 24/7 on that baby…” He states.

“Deal!” Mercedes says excited. They were so ready to start a family.

After some deliberation, the couple finally chooses one movie and lying in bed, they start to watch it. Eventually Sam gets bored and starts to play with Mercedes hair instead.

“I love you…” The blonde man suddenly says. “I know I repeat it like all the time, but I really mean it. I love you…”

Mercedes smiles and looking into those green eyes she loves so much, she replies, “And I love you too…”

Sam hesitates for a minute. He knows that his wife loves him, but today after watching all his friends being super successful he couldn’t help but wonder if he was good enough for her. It was not like if he hadn’t achieved anything, he was super successful in his own way, but with her wife being part of the showbiz he couldn’t help but imagine what would had happened to them if he had chosen a very different path. Maybe keep being a model or maybe become a performer like the rest of his friends.

“What’s wrong?” Mercedes asks noticing the frown on her husband’s face.

“Nothing. Well, it’s just that sometimes I wonder if I’m good enough for you, you know? Maybe if I had continued as a model you could have had the famous husband to go with you to those red carpets and all of that…”

Mercedes stands up and grabs Sam’s hand. “I don’t know why we’re having this conversation, because you know I don’t care about fame. And let me tell you something, if you had continued as a model then know for sure that I wouldn’t be married to you right now….” She states.

“Why not?”

“Because that would have meant, that you gave up on your dreams just to have money and fame, and that’s not a man I had loved…Not in a thousand years…The right man for Mercedes is the one who follows his dreams and just so you know, I married him 8 years ago…”

Sam smiles warmly and leans over to kiss his wife. “I love you Mrs. Evans…”

Mercedes kisses him back and rolls her eyes playfully at him. It was unbelievable that after all these years Sam were still thinking about that. “And I love you too Mr. Evans…” She says and seizing the opportunity starts to sing a song that’s very close to her heart and she knows it’s going to help her explain the immense love she feels for the man in front of her .

_(Mercedes)…For all those times you stood by me, for all the truth that you made me see. For all the joy you brought to my life, for all the wrong that you made right. For every dream you made come true, for all the love I found in you. I’ll be forever thankful, baby. You’re the one who held me up, never let me fall. You’re the one who saw me through, through it all…_

Sam looks into Mercedes’ eyes while the diva serenades him with that beautiful love song. The blonde man knows why she chose that song; to tell him why she loves him, to reassure him why she chose him. With that thought in mind, suddenly an overwhelming feeling strikes him and some tears start to roll down his face.

_(Mercedes)…You were my strength when I was weak, you were my voice when I couldn’t speak. You were my eyes when I couldn’t see, you saw the best there was in me. Lifted me up when I couldn’t reach, you gave me faith ’cause you believed. I’m everything I am, because you loved me, ooh, baby…_

Mercedes, using the back sleeve of her pajamas, wipes the tears from her husband’s face and rubs his cheek as she keeps singing. Sam smiles at her and not wanting to lose the opportunity to sing with her, the now teacher, stands up from the bed and takes the lead on the next part of the song.

_(Sam)…You gave me wings and made me fly, you touched my hand I could touch the sky. I lost my faith, you gave it back to me. You said no star was out of reach. You stood by me and I stood tall, I had your love, I had it all. I’m grateful for each day you gave me, maybe, I don’t know that much, but I know this much is true. I was blessed because I was loved by you…_

Sam uses the lyrics of the song to also thank Mercedes for always believing in him and encourage him to do great things and always pursue his dreams. Mercedes smiles softly and starts to slow dance with the blonde man while they keep singing.

_(Mercedes)…You were my strength when I was weak, you were my voice when I couldn’t speak. You were my eyes when I couldn’t see, you saw the best there was in me. Lifted me up when I couldn’t reach. You gave me faith ’cause you believed…I’m everything I am, because you loved me…_

Moments like these are the ones Mercedes treasures the most, she could be a successful singer with lots and lots of fame, but nothing could beat the feeling she had every time she was in her husband’s arms. She would trade everything just to have the chance to be always like this. Embraced to the love of her life.

_(Sam)…You were always there for me, the tender wind that carried me. The light in the dark shining your love into my life…_

Sam holds himself tighter to the love of his life. Now he realizes how silly he must have sounded just a few seconds ago when he questioned if he was good enough, because of course he was good enough for her. She had told him that and he believed her. During all these years they’ve had ups and downs like any marriage, but at the end of the day they have been able to face everything because the love between them is so immense that not even the most powerful bomb could destroy.

_(Mercedes)…You’ve been my inspiration through the lies you were the truth. My world is a better place because of you…_

Mercedes looks into Sam’s eyes while she sings some lines of the song, the truth emanating from her lips in the form of a melody can’t be doubted. She’s meaning every word she’s saying and Sam can’t help but smile. Smile the most beautiful of the smiles.

_(Both)…You were my strength when I was weak, you were my voice when I couldn’t speak. You were my eyes when I couldn’t see, you saw the best there was in me. Lifted me up when I couldn’t reach, you gave me faith ’cause you believed. I’m everything I am, because you loved me…_

The couple joins their voices like they do every time they can and create the perfect harmony. They both know that their voices work perfectly together. Sam with his medium range that seems to complement Mercedes’ powerful range; sweet and smooth versus intense and passionate.

_(Both)…You were my strength when I was weak, you were my voice when I couldn’t speak. You were my eyes when I couldn’t see, you saw the best there was in me. Lifted me up when I couldn’t reach, you gave me faith ’cause you believed. I’m everything I am, because you loved me…_

Before the song comes to an end, Mercedes leans over and kisses Sam’s cheek while she whispers the last line of the song, pouring all her heart in every note. Like she always does.

_(Mercedes)…Ohhhh. I’m everything I am, because you loved me…_

By the time Santana and Brittany make it back to Santana’s abuela’s house, Alma was already in bed. After texting Santana that she left a key under the doormat, something Brittany taught her how to do, she turned off the lights and made her way to her room.

With Amelia fast asleep in her arms and Sophia dragging her little feet and rubbing her tired eyes beside her, Santana walks up to the front door. “Baby girl, will you lift the mat and grab the key for Mami?”

As Brittany walks up the concrete pathway with Aiden asleep in her arms, to meet her wife and twin girls by the front door, Sophia bends over and picks the silver key up from under the door mat.

“Here Mami.” The little girl whispers.

“Gracias bebé.” Santana takes the key from Sophia and softly shifts Amelia to her right side, freeing her left hand to unlock the door. Once the door is unlocked, Santana pushes it all the way open with her hip. Placing her hand on Sophia’s back, she ushers her inside the house.

The house is pitch black as Santana tries to feel her way to the light switch. She trips over a pair of her abuela’s loafers muttering out a loud whisper, “Shit!” as she grips onto Amelia making sure she wouldn’t drop her mid stumble.

“San…” Brittany warns, coming up behind Santana and flipping the living room lights on.

“I’m sorry, I tripped and almost dropped our daughter.” Santana boots Amelia up again, trying to reposition the five year old girl. “She is getting too big for this.”

“Yeah, but she will always be your little tiny baby. So, I give her at least three more years before you start telling her no to being held.” Brittany giggles.

It was no secret the even though Sophia was a mini Santana personality wise, Amelia was definitely a _Mami’s_ girl. Amelia had a lot of Brittany’s personality and if anyone ever thought the tall blonde was Santana’s kryptonite they would be shocked to see her with Amelia for she turned into a pile of mush and gave the little girl anything and everything she wanted.

Santana’s eyes widen, “No way B. I will not be carrying her still when she is 8 years old!”

Smiling softly at her wife, Brittany says softly, “Sure babe.” Before quickly changing the topic so Santana couldn’t argue back. “Now come on, let’s get this sleepy heads to bed, we got two passed out and I’m not so sure Sophia will make it up the steps.” Brittany says looking at a nodding off Sophia leaning up against the walk of the living room.

Chuckling, Santana walks over to her other daughter. “Come on bebé. Let’s get ready for bed.” Santana reaches her left arm out for Sophia and lets out a small laugh when Sophia wraps her arm around her Mami’s neck, wanting to be carried up the steps too. Santana grips at Sophia’s waist, hoisting her up on her other hip before walking up the steps with a _‘too big for this’_ twin on each side.

When the family of five make it to the top of the steps Brittany steps through the door to the right of the hallway where Santana, Aiden and her have been sleeping. As Brittany changes a dead weight sleeping Aiden into his pajamas, Santana walks to the door on the left of the hallway, right across from their room, and pushes the door open before setting the twins down on the queen sized bed.

“Can you get yourself changed into your PJ’s mija.” Santana says to Sophia whose head bobbed up and down as she tried to fight sleep.

Sophia barely opens her eyes and shake her head no. Santana lets out a sigh laced with a chuckle. “Okay lift your arms up.” Santana begins to undress Sophia as Brittany walks through the bedroom door.

“I swear that kid is easier to change when he is asleep than when he’s awake.” The blonde laughs.

Sending her wife a smile Santana says, “Well good, then come help me. Amelia is dead to the world asleep right now and Sophia can barely hold her head up, so we gotta change them too.”

After give a short nod in response Brittany walks over to Amelia and takes off her shoes. She tries to wake the little girl up to tell her she was going to change her into her pajamas but the tiny Latina was out like a light.

Brittany and Santana successfully got the twins changed and scooted up on their pillows. Santana leans over the bed and kisses both girl on the forehead. “Te amo, buenas noches.” She whispers before pulling back and making room for Brittany to do the same.

Straightening her back, Brittany follows Santana walking towards the door. She flips the switch turning off the light and leaves the door cracked as her and her wife leave the room. Walking across the hallways the two women enter their temporary bedroom, Brittany immediately starts to change out of her dress and into a pair of sweatpants with ducks printed on the legs and a pink tank-top. Santana strips down and changes into a pair of pink silky short and a light blue night shirt before bending down to kiss Aiden’s forehead as he lays asleep in his makeshift bed next to theirs.

Crawling into bed first, Santana props her head up on two pillows and waits for Brittany to slide in on the other side and cuddle into her chest. After Brittany is settled into her rightful place in Santana’s arms, the Latina cranes her neck to look down at the blonde. “You know, you really need to do something about that daughter of yours. What she said to Aiden earlier was unacceptable.”

Snorting in laughter Brittany shifts her head so she can look up at her wife as she raises an eyebrow in the brunette’s direction. “Oh, so she’s my daughter now? She is exactly like you.” The blonde says playfully.

Side glancing Brittany with a small pout evident on her lips, Santana says, “Yeah, but you did such a good job straightening me out.” She sends Brittany a sly wink causing the blonde to bury her face into the crook of Santana’s neck as she tries to muffle her own laughter to keep from waking the baby boy up.

“Okay, okay, sweet talker. I will sit down and talk with her tomorrow.”

Santana looks down at her wife with soft eyes. “Thank you.” She leans down and captures thin pink lips with her own. When their lips part Santana lets out a long dramatic sigh before saying, “It’s back to the real world tomorrow. Back to L.A. and our crazy schedules between me going to the recording studio, you at the dance studio, and the girls’ at school.” She pauses and lets out another sigh. “I just really liked these last few days here. They reminded me of where it all started, you know?” Santana runs her arm up and down the length of Brittany’s, playing connect the dots with the freckles she found there. “I feel like sometimes we get so wrapped up in what’s going on in our day to day lives, that I forget how amazing and lucky I am to be where we are.” She shifts her eyes from the blank space she had zoned out into down to her wife. “I just want you to know that I love you so much, and I don’t know what I’d do without you. You’re everything to me Britt. You and the kids are my everything.”

Brittany shifts to cuddle in close to her wife. “You’ve come such a long way since we lived in Lima. The past ten years have been the happiest of my life and I have you to thank for that. I don’t know what I’d do without you either. And I know we will have many more centuries to celebrate together.” She finishes with a wide smile.

Santana laughs and kisses Brittany, “Decades Britt, I think you mean Decades…But I hope for centuries with you too.” She winks at her. Santana then sits up and swings a leg over Britt’s, so she is straddling her sitting back on her legs. She leans down and kisses her wife softly and whispers to her, “It’s just this town is where we fell in love Britt and I can’t help but be all emotional about it…Tell anyone else and they’ll never believe you.” She laughs out loud.

Cracking a huge smile Brittany nods knowing it’s true because this side of Santana is only showed to four people in the world, her wife and her three kids. Santana sits back up and looks at Brittany with a smirk. “Now we are going on our tenth year of marriage so,…Will you sing with me?”

Brittany smiles and bites her lip nodding yes. “Here’s to us Britt…” She leans back down kissing her wife again, and with a smile she starts to sing,

_(Santana)…Looks like we made it, Look how far we’ve come, my baby. We mighta took the long way. We knew we’d get there someday. They said, “I bet they’ll never make it.” But just look at us holding on. We’re still together, still going strong…_

As Santana sings she runs her fingers over Brittany’s face, taking in her gorgeousness and reveling in her luck to be able to still call the beautiful blonde her wife. It was true a lot of people thought that they were just a high school fling; but years later they were still going strong and if it was even possible they were more in love now that ever.

_(Santana)…(you’re still the one)…(Brittany)You’re still the one I run to. The one that I belong to. You’re still the one I want for life…(Santana)…(you’re still the one)… (Brittany)…You’re still the one that I love. The only one I dream of. You’re still the one I kiss good night…_

Brittany takes over signing as Santana sings the ad-libs as backup, smiling at her wife’s angelic voice. The blonde stead Santana’s waist as she sits up, keeping her arms wrapped around her wife as she looks into her eyes, loving the fact that she got to wake up and fall asleep next to the beautiful Latina every night for the rest of her life.

_(Brittany)…Ain’t nothing better. We beat the odds together. I’m glad we didn’t listen. Look at what we would be missing. They said, “I bet they’ll never make it.”. But just look at us holding on. We’re still together still going strong…_

As Brittany continues to sing, her and Santana both look down at the sleeping boy next to them. Proud of their three kids with smiles on their faces. Neither could imagine what life would be like without one of those three kids. So now, more than ever, they were glad they didn’t listen to all the things that tried to keep them apart. They are a family now and both of them couldn’t imagine life any other way. They got everything they ever wanted and more.

_(Brittany)…(you’re still the one)…(Santana)You’re still the one I run to. The one that I belong to. You’re still the one I want for life…(Brittany) (you’re still the one)…(Santana) You’re still the one that I love. The only one I dream of. You’re still the one I kiss good night. You’re still the one…_

Santana takes over the chorus this time, letting Brittany sing the back up. Taking her eyes off their sleeping son, she looks back to her wife. Smiling, she gazes into sapphire eyes and thinks back to everything the went through, knowing she would do it all over a thousand times if it meant this was the end result; it was completely worth it.

_(Brittany)…(you’re still the one)…(Santana)You’re still the one I run to. The one that I belong to. You’re still the one I want for life…(Brittany) (you’re still the one)…(Santana) You’re still the one that I love. The only one I dream of. You’re still the one I kiss good night…_

Brittany reaches out and grabs onto Santana’s hand, lacing their fingers together as they both harmonized together. Leaning into each others embrace, enjoying the warmth they felt when wrapped in their lover’s arms.

_(Brittany and Santana)…I’m so glad we made it. Look how far we’ve come, my baby…_

During all the way back from Breadstix to Burt’ house, Kurt and Blaine tried to remain silent in hope that by the time they got to the house, their three little kids were already asleep. But, when Kurt parked the SUV outside the house and turned around to take a look at the back seats, he found his three little kids still very much awake.

“We are home…” He whispers and the three kids smile.

“Can’t believe they are still awake…” Blaine whispers to his husband while he unbuckles his seat-belt. “I thought that with all the activity they had during the day they would be passed out right now…”

“Me too…” Kurt whispers back and climbs out of the car.

Kurt and Blaine help their kids to come out of the car and the happy family walks together to the door. The lights of the living room are still on when they enter the house and it’s only when they make it through the threshold and into the living room that Blaine notices that his dad is still there watching a game with Burt, and he wonders why he didn’t notice that his dad’s black car was still parked outside the house.

“Dad!” He exclaims surprised. “Didn’t know you guys were still here!”

Nicholas gives his son a warm smile. “We were waiting to say goodnight to the little ones…” He explains.

Blaine smiles back and Elizabeth, who was next to him, immediately runs into her grandpa’s arms. Nicholas picks her up and in that moment Pam and Carole emerge from the kitchen and join the small reunion.

“What’s up guys! Why are these three still awake?” Carole asks kissing Lila’s little head.

Just when Kurt is about to reply, Lila looks up into her grandma’s eyes and says, “Because we wanted to wait to hear the story Daddy promised to continue…”

“What story sweetheart?” Pam asks.

“A bedtime story we started back home…” She explains.

Carole and Pamela smile and Blaine laughs a little. “That’s why you three are still awake?” He asks.

The three kids nod frantically as they say, “You promised…”

“I know, I know and I’ll continue the story…” Blaine says.

“But first…” Kurt interferes. “You need to say goodnight to your grandparents and thank them for all the fun today…”

Lila, Carter and Elizabeth nod and give _‘group hugs’_ to each of their grandparents. Kurt and Blaine look at each other and smile. They still can get over of how amazing their three little kids are.

Once the kids are done with the hugs and kisses, Kurt carries Elizabeth and grabs Carter and Lila’s hands. “Let’s go kids, it’s late, let’s get you into your pj’s. Your grandparents need to rest…” He says walking to the stairs.

“Just them sweeties…We’re still young.” Pamela says pointing towards her and Carole.

Kurt nods and laughs playfully along with his step and mother in law. “You’re right, you two are in the blossom of youth. Let’s go kids your grandpas need to rest…”

Kurt and the kids start to climb up the stairs and Kurt, half way through, stops and turning around he says, “Ummm, we’ll see each other for breakfast, right?”

Nicholas and Pamela nod and Kurt smiles turning around. “Okay, then night!”

“Night Kiddos!” Burt exclaims as Kurt goes upstairs with the three little kids.

Kurt enters the kids room and while his little angels start to run around the room, he walks to the small wardrobe and takes out his kids favorite matching pajamas. Three colorful onesies with the numbers 1, 2, and 3 written on the back and the legend _‘squad A-H’_ on the front. A gift from their grandpa Nick last Christmas.

“Okay kids, time to sleep!” Kurt claps. “Come here so I can put on your pj’s!” He says grabbing one of the onesies randomly and quickly changing Elizabeth.

“Which number I got?” The girl asks.

“Ummm…” Kurt mutters quickly glancing to the back of the pajama, “3 sweetheart…”

Elizabeth smiles and just climbs into the bed. “Now’s your turn Carter…” Kurt says taking the onesie with the number 2 on it and changing his little boy.

Carter and Elizabeth immediately get into the bed, but Lila starts to jump on the bed, running away from Kurt who’s trying to grab her to change her clothes.

“Lila, sweetie is time to go to bed…” Kurt says trying not to lose his patience.

“No!” The little girl exclaims and just keeps jumping between her brother and sister.

“Lila, you already played all day…” Kurt says reaching out to grab the girl’s hand, but he didn’t move fast enough because next things he knows, the little naughty girl is running again around the room and clearly laughing at her papa’s slow moves.

“Lila Anderson-Hummel!” Kurt exclaims trying not to laugh at his daughter’s antics. “Come here right now!”

“No!” The little one replies and laughs again.

Kurt rolls his eyes playfully and takes two steps to try to grab her, finally catching her by the door. In that moment Blaine opens the door and looking at the scene, he says, “Well, I want to play whatever you guys are playing too…”

Kurt laughs and forcefully taking the girl to the bed, he says, “Sorry honey, but the game is over…”

Lila pouts and Blaine laughs a little while Kurt, despite Lila’s pouty faces, changes her into her pj’s. The last onesie with the number 1 on it.

“Now, get into bed sweetie, the squad is not complete if the number 1 is missing…” Kurt says trying to get her into bed.

Lila, very reluctantly, gets into bed and lays next to her brother. They still don’t know a lot of numbers but they do know that 1 comes first followed by 2 and 3, and they seem to enjoy sleeping according to the number they randomly got to wear that night.

Blaine smiles at the sweet image of his three kids laying in matching pj’s and he takes a sit on one side of the bed, while Kurt turning off the light and leaving just the night lamps on, sits on the other side. Their three little kids laying between them.

“Okay, so it’s time to sleep and since I promised, you’ll have your story, but this is going to be a short story, okay? It’s late and we have to sleep to go to have breakfast with Grandpa Nick and Grandma Pam tomorrow before going home…”

The three little kids nod excited and Kurt grabs the blanket and tucks them in so they get warm and fall asleep quickly.

Blaine takes a moment to remember where he left off the story, but nothing comes to mind. “Where were we?” He asks, just remembering he started a story about a mouse who was not happy at his dumpster.

Kurt rolls his eyes playfully at his husband and whispers, “When Mouse was feeling sad and rejected and walked into the fancy dumpster…”

Blaine chuckles. He knows that his husband already knows what the story is about, but he doesn’t care, he thinks it’s cute so he continues. “Yeah, well after Mouse left his dumpster and walked into this new fancy and very pretty dumpster, he saw that all the mice there were having so much fun. Confused as to why the mice were so happy, Mouse stopped a very nice and handsome mouse that was just passing by and asked him; _‘Excuse me? Can I ask you a question? I’m new here…’_ The handsome mouse turned around and with a big smile he introduced himself. _‘My name is–’_ ” Blaine is saying when Lila interrupts.

“Rizzo!” She yells, clearly giving a name for the new mouse.

Kurt laughs and Blaine nodding continues telling his bedtime story. “ _‘My name is Rizzo…’_ Then Rizzo, being friendly, took Mouse’s paw, and led him to a big side of the dumpster where the mice were having a reunion…”

 “A reunion?” Elizabeth asks, her voice already sounding sleepy.

Blaine nods. “Yes, every now and then all the mice of the dumpster got together to see the ummm the Cheeselets perform…” Blaine improvises.

“Like the snacks?” Kurt whispers, trying not to laugh at his husband’s imagination. “Really?”

Blaine just nods and suppressing his laughter, he continues. “The Cheeselets were the  singing group of that dumpster and Rizzo was part of it…”

“Did he sing a song?” Carter asks, rubbing his little eyes trying to stay awake to listen to the rest of the story.

“Yes he did…” Blaine continues. “He sang a beautiful song to Mouse and between you and I…” He adds winking at his kids. “Mouse couldn’t stop smiling because he was happy again. And Rizzo was happy too, because he thought that Mouse was very nice and could be his new best friend.”

“Did Mouse tell him about the cat?” Lila asks. From the three, she was the one who was more intrigued about the story.

“Yes, after Rizzo sang his song, he and Mouse took a cup of a very special coffee for mice and Mouse told him all about what happened in the other dumpster with the evil cat. Rizzo was very sad to hear all those awful things Mouse had to go through, but he offered himself to help him…”

“And what happened next?” Lila asks again, wanting to hear the end of this as soon as possible.

“Mouse and Rizzo became friends…” Blaine simply replies quickly glancing towards his husband who was now looking at him with heart eyes.

“Just friends?” Elizabeth asks, yawning in the process.

Blaine shakes his head. “No, they became best friends.”

“But what happened with the evil cat? Did Rizzo save Mouse?” Lila asks, trying to put all the pieces together. She was a very clever girl.

“He did…” Kurt interferes. “He did save Mouse, but that’s another story…”

Blaine smiles and says, “It is, but now it’s time to sleep…We’ll continue the second part of the story later…Okay? When we get home…”

The three little kids nod with their eyes already closed. Kurt and Blaine tuck in their kids with the rest of the blankets and kiss them goodnight.

Once they are sure the kids are fully asleep, Kurt stands up and walks to the other side of the bed to grab his husband’s hand and pull him out of the bed. “Well…Rizzo…” He says joking. “I think today was a good day don’t you think?”

Blaine laughs and whispers. “Yeah, it was good I didn’t know I missed them that much until I saw all their faces…” He says as he turns the baby monitor on.

“Yeah, me too. It was great to see them all again–” Kurt says as they walk out of the room and into what used to be Kurt’s room. “–and being as happy as we are…”

Blaine smiles warmly and hugs his husband leaving a trail of kisses around his neck. “Almost ten years later and we are still together…” He whispers into Kurt’s ear.

“Well, I don’t know about you, but I promised forever…” Kurt jokes kissing Blaine’s neck too.

“And ever…” Blaine says finally locking lips with his husband. “Did you ever imagine that after all we’ve been through we would be like this? Happy, with wonderful careers, a bright future in front of us, still madly in love and raising 3 beautiful kids?”

Kurt smiles and nods. “I actually did…And I’m glad my dreams came true…”

Blaine just smiles as an answer and whispers, “I love you…”

“I love you too…Always have…Always will.”

Blaine suddenly gets excited with Kurt’s love confession and an idea crosses his mind. “Close your eyes…” He asks Kurt.

“Why?” The blue eyed man asks frowning a little confused.

“Shhhh don’t ask, just close them…”

Kurt rolls his eyes playfully but closes his eyes anyways. And just like every time he got the chance, Blaine started to sing.

_(Blaine)…Close your eyes, let me tell you all the reasons why I think you’re one of a kind. Here’s to you, the one that always pulls us through. You always do what you gotta do. You’re one of a kind, thank God you’re mine._

The moment Kurt recognizes the song, he smiles warmly and snap his eyes open just to find Blaine looking at him with adoration. Kurt’s heart melts as he listens to his husband’s rendition of the Michael Buble song.

_(Blaine)…You’re an angel dressed in armor, you’re the fair in every fight. You’re my life and my safe harbor, where the sun sets every night. And if my love is blind. I don’t want to see the light…._

Blaine takes Kurt’s hand and leads him to one side of the room where there’s more space for them to dance, or slow dance for that matter. Kurt smiles at his sometimes over romantic husband and starts to dance with him, as he joins the song.

_(Kurt)…It’s your beauty that betrays you, your smile gives you away. Cause you’re made of strength and mercy and my soul is yours to save. I know this much is true, when my world was dark and blue….I know the only one who rescued me was you…_

Blaine lets Kurt to continue the song. They know each other so well that there’s no need to tell who sings which part of the song, they know it already, their voices always find a way to make every song work into a perfect duet.

_(Kurt)…Close your eyes, let me tell you all the reasons why you’re never gonna to have to cry because you’re one of a kind. Yeah, here’s to you, the one that always pulls us through. You always do what you gotta do baby, because you’re one of a kind…_

Kurt and Blaine look at each other and smile warmly. Millions of unsaid words going back and forth between them with just one look. The connection the have managed to create in all these years is shown in the way their eyes meet and their hands find each other at the softest touch. Like two pieces of an never ending puzzle.

_(Both)…When your love pours down on me, I know I’m finally free. So I tell you gratefully, that every single beat in my heart is yours to keep…_

Blaine and Kurt join their voices, creating that perfect harmony as they keep slow dancing. The room around them completely disappearing and the world stopping for a moment as they quickly kiss each other.

_(Both)…So close your eyes, let me tell you all the reasons why babe, you’re never going to have to cry baby because you’re one of a kind. Yeah, here’s to you, you’re the one that always pulls us through. You always do what you got to do babe, ’cause you’re one of a kind…_

The last notes of the song start to play, and Kurt grabbing his husband’s hand, the one that has the wedding band on it, lifts it a little and places a sweet kiss on the cold metal as he pours all his feelings in his last line.

_(Kurt)…You’re the reason why I’m breathing with a little look my way…_

Blaine smiles like a kid on Christmas Day and repeats the gesture. Kissing Kurt’s ring too and looking into those blue eyes he happens to love so much as he sings the last line of the song.

_(Blaine)…You’re the reason that I’m feeling, it’s finally safe to stay…_

Quinn and Puck enter Quinn’s mom house and find her at the kitchen baking some cookies for little Richard.

“Cookies!” The kid exclaims the moment the smell hits his nostrils.

“Hi, mom!” Quinn says putting Richard on the ground and smiling at her mother. The little kid immediately runs to the counter and stretching his little arms he tries to grab one of the recently baked cookies.

“Baby, you already ate at the restaurant, the cookies are not going anywhere, you can eat them tomorrow…” Quinn says, but little Puckerman doesn’t listen to her and grabs a bunch of his granny’s cookies.

Puck and Quinn look at each other while Richard eats the cookies desperately. _‘He’s just like his father.’_ Quinn thinks, noticing those small manners her son inherited from his father.

“Yummy!” Richard squeals a couple of seconds later. He loves cookies, and in general everything that contains a considerable amount of chocolate.

“How was the dinner? How do the rest of the kids look like?” Quinn’s mom asks while she gives Richard a glass of milk.

“Oh they are beautiful! and mostly all of them have around the same age so they had a lot of fun, Rachel has two kids a girl named Ellie, she’s 6 and a little boy a little Ian, he’s a little younger than Richard, Kurt and Blaine have 3 year old triplets and Brittany and Santana have 5 year old twin girls a small kid too. Daniel, Mr. Schue’s boy is super big he’s 12 now and he has a little sister who if I recall correctly is also 6…” She explains.

“And Mercedes? The other Asian kid and the guy in the wheelchair?” Judy asks.

“Mom how many times do I have to tell you their names? They are not Asian kid and guy in the wheelchair, they are Mike and Artie…but anyways, Mercedes doesn’t have kids yet, but soon. Mike just divorced and Artie has a small boy, he’s still a baby…”

“Awww that’s so sweet, did you guys take pictures…”

Puck nods as he stuffs his mouth with one of the cookies, apparently somewhere in the middle of the conversation he had joined his little son and they both were finishing with all the cookies in the blink of an eye.

“Here…” Puck says handing his mother in law his phone.

“Well, look at that! Those kids are beautiful! I’m so glad you guys got the chance to catch up with your friends.”

“Yeah it was nice…” Quinn agrees. “But now it’s time to go to sleep, come on sweetie, let’s go to bed!” She says looking at her son. “Thank you granny for the cookies and kiss her goodnight.”

Richard does as he was told to and kisses her grandma goodnight leaving her a chocolate stain in her cheek. “Night grandma!”

“Goodnight sweetheart. Tomorrow I’ll back you more cookies so you can take them home okay?”

Richard nods frantically while her dad picks him up and carries him towards the room. Quinn is following right behind them.

When they enter the room, Puck quickly changes his son into his pj’s and puts him in bed. Quinn lays next to him and starts to hum him a lullaby to get him to sleep like she does every night. Richard smiles warmly and closes his eyes.

Puck, who’s looking at the scene from afar, can’t help but smile like a fool. He loved his family with all his heart and watching his wife in her role of mother was his favorite part of the day. Lost in his happiness, Puck stayed there just watching Richard and Quinn until Quinn speaks up.

“What?” She asks, bringing Puck back to reality.

“Nothing.” He says, “I just love to admire my wonderful wife and my son, have I told you they are the best thing that’s ever happened to me?” He says flashing his crooked charming smile.

“Really?” Quinn teases.

“Yeah…” Puck says. “He’s adorable, handsome as his father and the most amazing kid in the world, and her…well what can I tell you about her…? She stole my heart back in high school and I’ve loved her since then…”

Quinn smiles warmly and walks closer to where her husband is and takes a seat on his lap. “I love you too…”

Puck smiles at her and suddenly something comes to his mind. Standing up and grabbing his wife’s hand, he says, “Come!” causing the blonde to frown confused.

“Where are we going?” She asks when she notices that her husband is walking towards the door of the room.

“To the roof…” Puck replies.

“Wait! But we can’t leave Richard alone, what if he wakes up and–” She is saying when Puck shuts her up by kissing her and showing her the baby monitor.

“We’ll have an eye on him, now let’s go!” He says practically dragging Quinn out of the room.

The couple makes it to the roof of the house and standing there Quinn asks, “And what are we doing here?”

Puck hugs her from behind and whispers into his ear. “Do you remember all those years ago when we had that rough path in our relationship and we fought about some stupid frat party? I told you back then to look at the moon every time you missed me because I would be looking at the same moon and I just realized that we haven’t looked at the moon for quite some time…”

“Because you’re here…” Quinn explains.

“Yeah I know, but also because our moon is no longer up in the sky…” He says, looking up into the sky where the moon was still shining. “Our moon is now in our son’s eyes, in our son’s smile and I couldn’t be more grateful for that…” Puck says.

“Oh my God!” Quinn giggles a little. “Sometimes you’re so cheesy!” She exclaims.

“Probably, but tell me is not the truth? We’ve done great Mrs. Puckerman…”

Quinn smiles warmly, because in fact they have done great. “Yes Mr. Puckerman, we have done great and we will continue to do great, forever and ever…”

Puck chuckles. “Who’s the cheesy now, eh?” He jokes.

Quinn laughs and hits him in the chest.  “No, but seriously…” Puck continues, “I want to thank you for the amazing family we’re raising together. Today, looking at all our friends faces, I realized that even though I loved them to death, the only human beings that I would die for are you, Beth and Richard…you guys are my life and I can’t picture it without any of you in it…”

Quinn turns around and instead of replying she just leans over and kisses her husband  sweetly. She is not as good with words as he is, but she wants to share how much she loves him too and the only way she finds is by locking her lips with his. Showing him her love in the world’s most old fashioned way; with a kiss.

“And now, before we go back inside I want to do something first…” Puck says and before Quinn can ask what that is, the military man starts to hum and sing, making the blonde to laugh and smile warmly.

_(Puck)…Look into my eyes, you will see what you mean to me. Search your heart, search your soul and when you find me there you’ll search no more…Don’t tell me, it’s not worth tryin’ for. You can’t tell me, it’s not worth dyin’ for. You know it’s true, everything I do, I do it for you…_

Puck grabs Quinn’s hand as he sings trying to give each word the right meaning. The dim light of the moon is reflecting on Quinn’s face and Puck can see the shiny tears that are rolling down her face. With the back of his sleeve, Puck wipes his wife’s face as he keeps singing.

Taking a deep breath, Quinn leans over and quickly kisses her husband before taking the lead in the next part of the song. She wants to have the opportunity to express what she feels too.

_(Quinn)…Look into your heart, you will find there’s nothin’ there to hide. Take me as I am, take my life, I would give it all, I would sacrifice. Don’t tell me it’s not worth fightin’ for. I can’t help it, there’s nothin’ I want more. You know it’s true, everything I do, I do it for you, oh yeah…_

The couple look at each other and smile warmly. After all these years there’s still love emanating from every part of their souls and they can feel it right now as they serenade each other under the moonlight.

_(Both)…There’s no love, like your love and no other could give more love. There’s nowhere, unless you’re there all the time, all the way yeah…_

When they finally join their voices in song, Puck grabs Quinn’s by the waist and starts to slow dance with her, there in the middle of the night on the roof of the house. They both swing with grace as if the music were really playing, but it’s only Puck’s humming that keeps them going.

_(Puck)…Look into your heart baby. Oh yeah…_

Quinn rests her head on Puck’s shoulder while the military man keeps singing. There’s something about the way Puck is singing that is sending chills all over Quinn’s body.

_(Quinn)…Oh, you can’t tell me it’s not worth tryin’ for. I can’t help it, there’s nothin’ I want more…_

Quinn tries to take the lead on the next verse, but just in the middle of it Puck interrupts. It was clear he wanted to sing those lines, so without hesitation Quinn stops singing and lets her man continue.

_(Puck)…Yeah I would fight for you, I’d lie for you, walk the wire for you…Yeah I’d die for you…_

The moment the words come out from Puck’s lips, Quinn can’t help but gasp before crying a little. During all these years of marriage if there’s something Puck has repeated over and over again was that he would, without a doubt, die for her. So hearing those words again, but during the song, bring tears to Quinn’s eyes while her heart clenches with an overwhelming mix of feelings.

The happy couple look at each other, their eyes shining under the light of the moon, and join their voices one last time. Telling to each other with the song how much they love and cherish what they have. A true love fairytale story.

_(Both)…You know it’s true, everything I do, ohh, I do it for you…_

The place is dark, all the lights are off and just the dim light coming from what looks like a phone is illuminating the path. A brunette woman is trying to open a door when the man standing in the dark, right behind her, whispers into her ear. “Are you sure this is okay? I really don’t want to end up in jail.” He says.

“It’s fine, nobody ever comes here past midnight…Don’t worry Wes, we’re not going to end up in jail.” Rachel reassures her husband.

Rachel finally founds and opens the right door and the couple jumps in surprise the moment the door opens. They are not the only ones trespassing the school’s territory in the middle of the night. Two familiar faces are standing there in the room, using a small lantern to light up their faces.

“Kurt? Blaine?” Rachel asks still surprised. “What are you guys doing here?”

Before any of the boys can reply, the door swings open again and the silhouette of two women appear on the threshold. “Hobbit? Prince Charming?” Santana asks noticing the first two people on the room. “Oh! And the Gay-Anderson-Hummel’s too?” She asks confused.

Kurt, Blaine, Wes and Rachel look at the Latina and her wife, and ask at the same time. “Santana? Brittany?”

“What are you–” They all ask at the same time, but shrug knowing that they are probably doing the same thing anyways.

“How fun is this!” Brittany exclaims excited. “We’re having a sleepover!” She says clapping her hands to show her excitement.

They all laugh and Kurt, noticing in the dim light of the room, the two girls outfits can’t help but say, “By the way girls, nice pj’s!”

Santana rolls her eyes. “We didn’t know you were going to be here too…” She says in self defense. Brittany was wearing a pair of sweatpants with ducks printed on the legs and a pink tank-top. Santana a pair of pink silky short and a light blue night shirt with a Minnie Mouse robe they bought a few years ago.

Kurt starts to laugh followed by Blaine. Santana is about to say something when the doors open again and Quinn, Puck, Tina, Mike, Artie, Madison, Sam and Mercedes come in too turning on the lights of the choir room.

“What the–” Sam explains noticing the rest of the clan.

“Guys! So glad to see you all here again!” Mercedes says. “We couldn’t sleep so I texted Quinn and we arranged this improvised meeting, we were going to call you all as soon as we could break in here, but you’re already here…similar minds think alike…”

They all nod and look at each other. They all went there for personal reasons and now that they were together, they didn’t know what to do.

“And now what!?” Puck says out loud, asking the question that was going through all of their minds.

Rachel smiles and running to the white blackboard she says, “Well, apparently we have a last week assignment…” She says as she roams around looking for a marker.

“Which is?” Blaine asks making the question for the rest of the group.

Rachel finds the marker and instead of replying she writes a word on the whiteboard. _‘Farewell…’_

“So this is it, is this the real goodbye?” Tina asks, clearly trying with all her will not to let the pregnancy hormones to take over her.

The group takes a deep breath and they all nod in agreement. This was it. And it is then that Tina starts to cry loudly. Quinn takes two steps closer to her friend and rubs her back. “Don’t cry Tina, we’re just saying goodbye to this place, we will always be friends.” She says hugging her tightly.

“You’re right Quinn…” Rachel says. “We will always be friends, but have you guys realized that it’s been almost 8 years since we’ve all been together? Who knows how long it will be again till we come back. I know we promised to see each other again soon and we will try and I’m sure most of us will be there. But our lives are now very different and we all know the chances of that to happen are very low…”

“Rachel…” Kurt interferes.

“No, Kurt. It’s true, every time we’ve come back here to say goodbye we’ve always ended back here a week later or something, but this time things are different. This is it guys, we are all going on separate ways and as much as we say we will stay in touch we don’t know what will happen, life is a mystery. So right now I just want to be standing in this room, holding hands and listening to us singing together one last time.”

Tina sobs loudly. “Do you remember the very first song we sang? When we were just five?”

“Of course we do Tina…We sucked back then…” Artie says laughing.

“Then I think it’s only appropriate that the original five sing a song to say goodbye to this place and show how good they are now…” Blaine proposes.

The rest of the clan nod and Rachel, Kurt, Tina, Mercedes and Artie take a step closer and start to sing. The rest of the group just look at them and help harmonizing with ad libs every now and then.

_(Rachel)…How do I say good bye to what we had? The good times that made us laugh outweigh the bad…_

When Rachel starts to sing, they all get that this is going to be a very painful moment in their lives, so knowing that it was always better to rush this things up, some of the members of this impromptu reunion start to walk away the room.

_(Tina)…I thought we’d get to see forever but forever’s gone away. It’s so hard to say goodbye to yesterday…_

Quinn and Puck first, followed by Mike who with a smile and a soft wave walks out the room while Tina is singing softly rubbing her round belly.

_(Artie)…I don’t know where this road is going to lead. All I know is where we’ve been and what we have been through…_

Artie takes the lead and while the now London man sings with all his heart, Tina, along with Brittany and Santana walk away quickly waving goodbye and trying not to cry in the process.

_(Mercedes)…If we get to see tomorrow, I hope it’s worth all the wait. It’s so hard to say goodbye to yesterday…_

Artie and Madison hold hands and the British girl starts to push her husband’s chair as they walk away too, leaving Mercedes singing her heart out with the song.

_(Kurt)…And I’ll take with me the memories to be my sunshine after the rain. It’s so hard to say goodbye to yesterday…_

When Kurt starts to sing, a tear rolls down Mercedes face and Sam takes a step closer to grab his wife’s hand as they walk away too, followed by Wesley who understands perfectly that this is a moment that his wife needs to give closer just by herself.

_(Rachel)…And I’ll take with me the memories to be my sunshine after the rain. It’s so hard to say goodbye to yesterday…_

Rachel sings again and Kurt walks over his husband and holding his hand for support, they walk away too, as tears roll down both their faces.

_(Rachel)…It’s so hard to say goodbye to yesterday…_

When the song comes to an end, Rachel is the only one standing there. She takes a moment to herself and breathing deeply she looks into what used to be her favorite place in the world, her safe haven. That old choir room that holds back so many memories.  Reminiscing about all the good times, a few tears roll down Rachel’s face. It was, in fact, too hard to say goodbye to some things in life, but she knew it was time.

With a smile, she slowly walks over the door and turning off the lights, she walks away from that choir room, from that little piece of their lives that will always be with them no matter where they are.

“Goodbye…” She whispers, closing forever the only doors that were always opened for her and the rest of her friends.

 

**The End.**


End file.
